The Call No One Wants to Get
Several years ago, an agency owner received a call that changed everything.
A case manager was concerned. Their client hadn't received care in weeks—maybe months. But according to the agency's records, visits were happening every single day.
Something didn't add up.
The Investigation
The agency pulled the timesheets. Sure enough, clock-ins happened like clockwork. The caregiver had been submitting hours faithfully.
Then they looked at the GPS data.
Every single clock-in happened far from the client's home. Not close. Not nearby. Completely different locations.
When confronted, the caregiver denied everything. Excuses came first: "The GPS must be wrong." "I was there." "Check the paperwork."
Then they showed her the evidence: timestamp after timestamp, location after location, none of them near the client's address.
She had been billing for services she never provided.
The Damage
The financial impact was immediate:
- $5,000+ in regulatory penalties
- Months of fraudulent billing to unwind
- Payback requirements to Medicaid
- Legal fees for investigation response
But the deeper damage was worse:
- Trust destroyed with the case manager who referred the client
- Reputation damaged in the provider community
- A client who went without care while someone billed for it
- A family who thought their loved one was being served
The agency survived. But the scar remains.
The First Fix: EVV
After this incident, the agency implemented Electronic Visit Verification. The rule was simple: caregivers must clock in within a set radius of the client's address.
No more claiming hours from across town. GPS verification would catch any attempt to bill without being present.
It worked—for a while.
The Workaround: Buddy Punching
Then someone got creative.
A caregiver shared their phone and login credentials with a friend. The friend drove to the client's home, stood in the driveway, clocked in using the caregiver's credentials, and left.
The caregiver never showed up. But the GPS data looked perfect.
This is called "buddy punching"—having someone else clock in on your behalf. It's been a problem in hourly work forever. In home care, where you're billing for services to vulnerable people, it's fraud.
EVV caught the location problem. But it couldn't verify the person.
The Solution: Face Verification
That's why we built face verification into CareCade.
When a caregiver clocks in, they take a quick selfie. The app compares it to their enrolled reference photo—right on the device, in seconds.
- The right location: GPS verification confirms where
- The right credentials: Login confirms authorization
- The right person: Face verification confirms who
Buddy punching becomes impossible. You can share your password, but you can't share your face.
How It Works
For Caregivers
The process is simple:
- Tap "Start Appointment" when you arrive
- Camera opens, you take a quick selfie
- App compares to your enrolled photo
- If matched, appointment starts
- Total time: less than 5 seconds
Good caregivers don't mind. They're already there. One selfie is a small price for protection.
For Agencies
Face verification provides:
- Proof the assigned caregiver was present
- Documentation for audits and compliance
- Protection from fraud that destroys reputations
- Trust with case managers and families
For Families
Families know:
- The person who showed up is who was supposed to show up
- Verified photos create accountability
- The agency takes identity seriously
- Their loved one is being served by vetted caregivers
Privacy Done Right
Biometric data is sensitive. We built face verification with privacy as a priority:
- On-device processing: Face comparison happens on the phone, not in the cloud
- No facial database: We're not building a collection of faces
- Enrollment photos stored securely: Same protection as all PHI
- Works offline: No need to send images over the internet
This isn't surveillance. It's verification—a single moment of identity confirmation, not ongoing tracking.
The Agencies That Get It
The best agencies we work with understand: trust is hard to build and easy to destroy.
One fraudulent employee can undo years of relationship building. One compliance violation can trigger audits and penalties. One incident can damage your reputation permanently.
Face verification is insurance against those risks. It's proof that your team is who they say they are, where they say they are, doing what they say they're doing.
Being There Means Being Verified
Trust in home care has always required faith. Families trust that caregivers show up. Agencies trust that employees are honest. Case managers trust that services are delivered.
But faith shouldn't be the only option.
When care can be verified—location, time, identity—trust is backed by evidence. Faith becomes confidence. Hope becomes certainty.
The agency that got that call years ago learned a hard lesson. We built CareCade so other agencies don't have to learn it the same way.
Being there means actually being there. And now we can prove it.