Caring.com positions itself as a platform of neutral information for consumers to find the correct service for them or their loved ones. Caring.com, had this to say about its role, Caring.com is the leading online destination for those seeking information and support as they care for aging parents, spouses, and other loved ones.
Except that it is far from a neutral platform. They accept referral fees from agencies that receive patients from them. How neutral can they be if they are taking money from the companies they are supposed to be judging? This is made even worse because of the nature of their business. They aren’t physicians, but they do provide advice that leads consumers to choose medical care. This advice is not based entirely on a consumer’s need but, at least partially, on the money they receive from referring these patients. How many people using Caring.com have been referred to a subpar service or agency because of the referral fee this agency or service is paying?
Aplaceformom.com is not any better. They claim, A Place for Mom (APFM) is dedicated to being a comprehensive senior living resource. We aspire to be leaders in the senior care industry, providing valuable information, resources, and best-in-class customer service to families and partners.
They position themselves as a repository of seemingly neutral information about senior living. They also accept referral fees from the agencies that they recommend. That’s how they keep everything free for the average website user.
The danger in these websites is that what they are presenting and what they are offering are two different things. They present a neutral trove of information related to home health agencies. They offer biased recommendations based on the referral fees that they receive. Laws have been put in place to stop physicians from referring patients to services that they have a financial stake in. These locator websites are trying to position themselves as neutral experts on home health care. People go to them for advice on where to seek medical care same as a physician. But, because they are not actually physicians they can get away with referring their customers to businesses that they are in active financial relationships with.
At Caring.com if you click on “How We Make Money” you can find the following information,
Some of these providers pay us a referral fee when a family hires them or moves into their community, in states that allow such payments. Others pay us if we send them your name and contact information, regardless of whether you start care. Still others pay an annual subscription fee to get enhanced features on their directory listing, such as additional photos or an option for people to schedule tours.
The “How We Make Money” tab is located at the very bottom of the page in relatively small print.
At Aplaceformom.com you can find the following,
A Place for Mom is the largest assisted living referral service. We are paid by our participating communities, therefore our service is offered at no charge to families.
This information is found at the bottom of the page in small print.
Another common theme at Caring.com and Aplaceformom.com is that their executive team is made up entirely of marketing executives and business operations executives.
These are for profit websites that are being run by individuals that have zero real experience on anything medically related. These websites claim to be a great source of information on senior living but they don’t have anyone on their management team that has any professional experience with real senior living issues. They lack the knowledge base to make any real recommendations. Despite this, they are making recommendations. These recommendations are based on referral fees that they are receiving.
These “locator” sites are also notorious for scrubbing bad reviews of paying agencies off their sites. Pat B. on Sitejabber.com had this to say about Caring.com, “Caring.com won't post bad reviews.”: My 88 year old father got kicked out of his assisted living arrangement with no notice just as he was about to get out of rehab and go back. When we went to move his stuff out two days later, we found that we were already locked out of his apartment. These people are criminals and caring.com wouldn't post my review of them. This is something that people need to know. Caring.com said that they could get sued for defamation if they posted my review. Why even ask for reviews if they are afraid to post them? Shame on Merrill Gardens in Madison, Alabama for doing that to seniors, and shame on Caring.com for not presenting the truth when people submit it.
Many online reviewers have also mentioned the aggressive tactics that Aplaceformom.com and Caring.com pursue when going after potential clients. None O. on Sitejabber.com had this to say about Aplaceformom.com, “Harassment - Don't Give Your Real Phone Number!”: I went online to look at the available and locations of assisted living near my father. I was required to enter my email and phone number to access the results. Literally seconds after I clicked, I got a call from A Place for Mom. Then two more calls a few minutes apart. Then another call 30minutes after the 3 call. I had to block the calls in my Caller ID. What kind of scam is this. I wonder if Joan Lunden, a trusted news person who serves as a spokesperson for these scammers is aware of this harassment.
Caring.com has an average score of 1.7 on SiteJabber and Aplaceformom has an average score of 1.9. Almost all the reviews for both sites are in the one star or five star category which means that their service is extremely polarizing. These sites only care about the profit and they are willing to engage in unethical business practices to obtain it.
I am writing this article to inform readers that the services these locator websites offer are not what they seem. If you are going to use a website to find a home health care agency you need to find out how that website makes its money. If it offers a “free” service and is run by a people with non-medical backgrounds then there is a very good chance that the site is accepting referral fees from agencies in exchange for customers. This is not a new problem in the industry. Aplaceformom.com has been hounded for years about their unethical referral system.
Here are exposes written by several journalists about Aplaceformom.com.
https://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/02/a-helping-hand-paid-on-commission/
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/senior-care-placement-companies-scramble-to-cash-in/
https://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/08/online-reviews-of-senior-housing-options-with-caveats/
Choices in Senior Care prides itself in never engaging in any kickback or referral fee setup with any home health care agency or assisted living facility. We have never accepted payment of any kind from any agency or facility that we refer clients to.
Our Care Managers are seasoned nurses that know their way around the various health care options you may need to consider. They always base their recommendations on the actual performance of the facility and never accept referral fees or any payments from their recommendations.
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