Your rights
Patient rights, records and complaints
Texas and federal law give home health patients specific rights. Here is what they are and how to use them.
Your rights as a patient
At the start of care, every patient receives a written statement of rights and responsibilities. These include the right to be treated with dignity and respect, to participate in planning your care, to be informed in advance about care and any changes, to refuse care, to have your property and privacy respected, to be free from abuse, neglect and exploitation, to receive information about charges and coverage, to choose your home health agency, and to voice grievances without retaliation (42 CFR 484.50; 26 TAC Chapter 558).
How to request your medical records
You or your legally authorized representative may request a copy of your records. To make a request, call (314) 703-8622 or email och@oceancarehealth.com and ask for the medical records request process. We will verify your identity, then provide records in the format you request when readily producible, including electronic copies. Texas law requires us to provide electronic records within 15 business days of a written request (Texas Health and Safety Code §181.102). If you want us to share your records with someone else, you can use the Texas Attorney General authorization form.
Our licensing authority
Home and Community Support Services Agencies in Texas are licensed and regulated by Texas Health and Human Services. A change of ownership of the agency license to OceanCare Health is in process; see our Quality and Compliance page for current status. Licensing and certification unit: 512-438-2630 (Texas HHS HCSSA program).
How to file a complaint
- With us: call (314) 703-8622 or email och@oceancarehealth.com and ask for the Administrator. We review and respond to complaints promptly and in writing.
- With the State of Texas: HHSC Complaint and Incident Intake, 1-800-458-9858 (Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Central), online through Texas HHS, or by mail to Texas Health and Human Services, Complaint and Incident Intake, Mail Code E249, P.O. Box 149030, Austin, TX 78714-9030.
- Privacy complaints: HHS Office for Civil Rights, hhs.gov/ocr/complaints.
- Suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation: call 1-800-458-9858. In an emergency, call 911.
If you have Medicare
You have the right to written notice before an agency provides care Medicare may not pay for (Advance Beneficiary Notice, CMS-R-131), before your home health services are reduced or stopped (Home Health Change of Care Notice, CMS-10280), and before all Medicare-covered home health services end (Notice of Medicare Non-Coverage, CMS-10123). The last notice explains how to ask the Quality Improvement Organization for a fast, independent review (CMS Beneficiary Notices Initiative).
If you have Texas Medicaid
Medicaid home health visits are recorded through Electronic Visit Verification, so your clinician will clock in and out at each visit (Texas HHS EVV). If a service is denied or reduced, you will receive a notice explaining your right to appeal. To report suspected Medicaid fraud, waste or abuse, call the Texas HHS Office of Inspector General at 800-436-6184 or report online through the Texas OIG. You may stay anonymous.
Electronic disclosure notice
Your protected health information may be subject to electronic disclosure for treatment, payment and health care operations, or as otherwise authorized or required by law. We will not electronically disclose it for other purposes without your authorization.
Last updated November 02, 2026.