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Home care staff requirements in Louisiana

The Louisiana Department of Health licenses home health agencies and, separately, home and community-based services providers, whose personal care attendant module covers non-medical in-home care. Direct service workers must be checked on the direct service worker registry before hire and every six months, and need a State Police criminal history and sex offender check, with temporary employment allowed while results are pending. Non-licensed direct care staff at these providers need 16 hours of training before working, first aid within 45 days, and 8 hours of training each year, while home health aides need 12 hours of in-service each year.

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Licenses

Home and community-based services providers must be licensed by the Louisiana Department of Health, and the license lists which services or modules the provider may offer (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5005(A)-(B)).
The personal care attendant module covers help with hygiene, dressing, bathing, eating, toileting, and moving, plus housekeeping, cooking, shopping, and community activities (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5079(B)).
The Louisiana Department of Health is the only licensing authority for home health agencies (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9105(A)).

Background checks

Before hiring any direct service worker, licensed providers must confirm the person is at least 18, can read, write, and understand English, and check the direct service worker registry (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9231(A)).
Providers must check the direct service worker registry at least every six months, and a worker with a finding of abuse, neglect, exploitation, extortion, or misappropriation may not keep working as a direct service worker (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9231(B)).
Providers must request a Louisiana State Police (or authorized agency) criminal history and security check when they offer a job, and the security check searches the national sex offender public registry (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9231(C)).
A provider may offer temporary employment while the criminal history check is pending, but must send the person's information to the State Police within 72 hours after the person accepts (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9231(C)(1)).
Home and community-based providers must run statewide criminal background checks on all unlicensed direct care staff at hire under R.S. 40:1203.2, and may not hire anyone with a conviction that bars employment (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5027(B)(9)-(10)).
Home and community-based providers must have a written policy to get the final outcome of every charge on a worker's criminal background check (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5029(C)(7)).
Home health agencies must check the direct service worker registry and the Louisiana certified nurse aide registry at hire and every six months after (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9119(A)(13)).

Training and competency

Each direct care worker at a home and community-based provider must complete at least 16 hours of training at hire and before giving care, covering policies, emergencies, client rights, abuse and neglect reporting, incident reporting, universal precautions, documentation, service plans, confidentiality, signs of illness, basic health skills, managing aggressive behavior, and scald prevention (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5055(H)(1)).
Each direct care worker must complete a basic first aid course within 45 days of hire (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5055(H)(2)).
The provider must give a written or oral competency evaluation on the training topics (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5055(I)).
Each direct care worker must complete at least 8 hours of training every year, not counting orientation or routine supervision (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5055(J)).
A home health aide must either hold current nursing assistant certification or have completed a home health aide training program, and in either case pass the agency's competency evaluation (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9103(C)(1)).
Home health aide orientation must cover agency policies, aide duties, the care team, ethics and confidentiality, record keeping, aging, emotional problems of illness, and a clean and safe environment (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9103(C)(5)).
Home health agencies must offer each home health aide at least 12 hours of in-service training every calendar year (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9103(C)(8)).

Health screening

Home health agencies must do an annual employee health screening under current local, federal, and state law and keep the results in each personnel record (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9119(A)(4), (B)(3)).

Also in the personnel file

A direct care supervisor at a home and community-based provider must make an unannounced in-person supervisory visit of each worker within 60 days of hire and at least once a year after, and document an annual performance evaluation (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5055(M)).
Home and community-based providers must have a policy on client safety during transport that includes reviewing each driver's license status report (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5029(B)(14)).
For home health aides, an RN or therapist must make a supervisory visit at least every 14 days when the patient gets skilled services, and an RN at least every 60 days with the aide present when the patient does not (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9103(C)(7)).
Home health personnel records must include the application, annual health screening results, license or certification verification, job description, orientation, annual evaluations, continuing education, criminal background investigation if applicable, and registry checks (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9119(B)).

Common questions

What background checks do home care aides need in Louisiana?

Before hiring any direct service worker, licensed providers must confirm the person is at least 18, can read, write, and understand English, and check the direct service worker registry (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9231(A)).

How much training do home care aides need in Louisiana?

Each direct care worker at a home and community-based provider must complete at least 16 hours of training at hire and before giving care, covering policies, emergencies, client rights, abuse and neglect reporting, incident reporting, universal precautions, documentation, service plans, confidentiality, signs of illness, basic health skills, managing aggressive behavior, and scald prevention (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5055(H)(1)).

What health screening do home care workers in Louisiana need?

Home health agencies must do an annual employee health screening under current local, federal, and state law and keep the results in each personnel record (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 9119(A)(4), (B)(3)).

Which license does a home care agency need in Louisiana?

Home and community-based services providers must be licensed by the Louisiana Department of Health, and the license lists which services or modules the provider may offer (La. Admin. Code tit. 48, Pt. I, Section 5005(A)-(B)).

Some rules for Louisiana weren't confirmed from an official source. Check with the state before relying on this page.

Sources

This page summarizes state licensing rules in plain words, with links to the rules themselves. It is not legal advice, rules change, and your license type decides what applies: check the linked source and your licensing agency. Medicare-certified home health agencies also follow 42 CFR 484.80. Checked October 2026.

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