My caregiver is switching agencies. Can I still use her through the new agency? Should there be concern with our present client service agreement?

You have no control over where your caregiver decides to work. Your caregiver is not properly of the agency she works for and she has the right to work for whomever she wants. This idea in the caregiver world that a worker cannot leave and go to a better paying agency or one with better benefits is ridiculous. She has no “proprietary information” from the first agency- just her own skill set. Name another work situation where you can’t take your own skills and experience and look for a better paying job! These people are not slaves or property. And, you should have the right to hire her wherever she chooses to go. When it comes to good care, I for one would be willing to fight this battle.

TKZMTJ: Pose your question to an attorney.

I suggested earlier that you “sack the agency, move to the caregiver’s new agency, but use a different carer for a while. If you swap back a bit later to the caregiver you particularly like, the contract breach isn’t so blatant”. I would try that myself if I were in your situation.

Your story would be something like “I heard some bad things about agency 1, and decided to try agency 2. After a couple of months I was sent the same caregiver we had had before. I was so surprised!”. I think it would be very unlikely that agency 1 find out if it didn’t happen straight away. If they did, and demanded payment, I doubt if they would risk starting a case when you refused to pay.

I’d suggest that you don’t cook it up with caregiver, who will still know people in agency 1 and might tell them the plan. Just do it! I agree that the point of the clause is probably to stop transferring to private pay, and making a fuss about a more tricky situation would not be worth risking the legal costs, particularly with an unsympathetic court. Of course this is not strictly “legal advice”!

See this older thread: https://www.agingcare.com/questions/favorite-caregiver-is-switching-to-a-new-agency-can-we-still-use-her-479201.htm

I think the intent of the wording is to make it confusing but I believe what it really means is privately employing one of their employees.
If you switch agencies, you will be employing an agency, not a person. You pay the agency, you are not employing a specific caregiver regardless of the fact it happens to be the same one. Why don't you called the new agency and ask their advice?

I have no idea what that means and I believe it's wrong that agreements that the average person must sign are written in that way. If I had to guess it means that if they assigned that caregiver then you must pay them up to a year after your contract with them expires if you use that caregiver.

Law can be very complex. To make matters worse you might get three different answers from three different attorneys. If you have concern I believe the best bet is to consult with an attorney who handles elder care contracts. Some will give you a free consultation.

I think that the previous answers may be wrong legally, though the original contract may be difficult to enforce. The words quoted are “for one year after its term, Client will pay Fees with respect to any and all Services that Client receives from any Caregiver assigned”. That probably is meant to cover the situation where the client sacks the agency and immediately hires the caregiver privately, but literally it also covers the situation where the caregiver changes agencies.

I honestly don’t have an answer to how to handle this. There are some old legal cases about freedoms related to employment, but thinking them through would be a bit like a debating topic for law students. Perhaps the best way to cover the trail is to sack the agency, move to the caregivers new agency, but use a different carer for a while. If you swap back a bit later to the caregiver you particularly like, the contract breach isn’t so blatant. Because the original agency would need to sue, just making it difficult for them may be enough.

You are free to switch over to using whatever agency that you choose.

I don't see where that has anything to do with an aide switching agencies. The aides contract is what is important I think. If she goes to another agency and you follow, that is stealing a client. Her contract may have a clause that forbids this or she can be sued.

I don't see how an agency can keep you from changing agencies.