Licensed Senior Home Care Agencies deliver professionally managed care by providing policies and procedures for Caregivers to follow. In addition, they provide training, supervision, Worker’s Compensation and Professional Liability insurance as extra levels of protection. The hiring process involves interviewing the Caregiver applicant to learn about their experiences, skills and personality.
Information collected in background checks may vary slightly according to the laws in the state where the Senior Home Care Agency is located. In addition, there may be information the agency can review, but cannot use to discriminate in hiring an applicant.
View Video "How Employers Review a Caregiver Background Check"
Background checks will usually include this information:
- Social Security number confirmation (name matches the number)
- Current and historical felony convictions
- Arrest record (usually only actual convictions)
According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the above information may only be reviewed for the past 7 years. However, each state enforces the FCRA and many states have their own consumer reporting laws which may provide more rights to consumers or require more disclosures of information.
Review your state’s laws for background check disclosures:
Caregiverlist’s Background Check List (FCRA ) by State.
Frequently Asked Questions About Background Checks
What is the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)?
The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) promotes the accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files of consumer reporting agencies. There are many types of consumer reporting agencies, including credit bureaus and specialty agencies which provide criminal record checks and driving record checks for Senior Home Care Agencies. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulates the FCRA.
Will I know if information in my file has been used against me?
Anyone who uses a credit report or another type of consumer report to deny your application for employment must tell you, and must give you the name, address, and phone number of the agency that provided the information.
Do Senior Home Care Agencies check my credit report?
Even though the background checks conducted by Senior Home Care Agencies are regulated under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), most agencies do not conduct credit checks, only criminal record checks and sometimes driving record checks, if you will be required to drive a senior.
How can I find out what information is contained in my background check?
By law, you have the right to know what is in your file and may request and obtain all the information about you (your file disclosure). You are also entitled to a free file disclosure if:
- a person has taken adverse action against you because of information in your credit report
- you are the victim of identity theft and place a fraud alert in your file
- your file contains inaccurate information as a result of fraud
- you are on public assistance
- you are unemployed but expect to apply for employment within 60 days
As of September, 2005, all consumers are entitled to one free disclosure every 12 months, upon
request, from each nationwide credit bureau and from nationwide specialty consumer reporting agencies.
For more information visit ftc.gov/credit or you may write to:
Consumer Response Center
Room 130-A,
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20580
If you are at all concerned about anything that may have happened in your past, the very best policy is to let the Senior Home Care Agency know, even before an interview is scheduled. Agencies are seeking caring, trustworthy individuals and will respect your honesty in disclosing items which may be considered irrelevant.
Single Source Services, a founding member of the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS), is a leading provider of background check information to Senior Home Care Agencies nationwide. Steven Albert, Manager at Single Source Services, says it is important that information comes from a valid reporting agency.
“In order for reports to be FCRA compliant, the information must be current and updated daily. Many of the database searches are not in real-time and may be 30-days old, at best”, says Mr. Albert. “For background checks to obtain live, accurate data, be sure you are contacting an authorized reporting agency”.
