Under BrightStar Care’s 2026 U.S. disclosure, a franchisee operates a licensed BrightStar Care Agency that sells in-home companion, personal and skilled care, medical staffing, and franchisor-directed National Accounts services. The franchisee hires and manages the local team; BrightStar Franchising, LLC controls brand standards, territory rules, approved inputs and key operating systems, with the Athena Business System at the center of scheduling, records and billing.
What does the BrightStar Care operating system look like at scale?
BrightStar Care is an agency network serving home care clients and institutional clients, while BrightStar Franchising, LLC controls National Accounts relationships that can generate work across multiple territories. The consumer-facing brand presents in-home care, skilled nursing and business-partnership staffing as distinct service paths.
What does a BrightStar Care franchisee sell, and who buys it?
The BrightStar Care Agency Program covers four Item 19 lines: Personal Care, Companion Care/Child Care, Skilled Services and Staffing. Home care clients may need activities-of-daily-living support, companionship or licensed clinical services; institutional clients include hospitals, nursing homes, clinics and schools needing supplemental personnel. Once an Agency reaches $15,000 in weekly revenue or one year open, whichever comes first, it must apply for Joint Commission Accreditation and obtain it within six months.
For 412 included agencies, Item 19 reports a 2025 billed-revenue mix of 51.0% Personal Care, 38.6% Skilled Services, 8.1% Staffing and 2.3% Companion Care/Child Care; this is operating mix, not owner earnings. Public in-home care and business partnership pages confirm the same service channels.
National Accounts are not ordinary local accounts. BrightStar Franchising, LLC has the exclusive right to designate and negotiate National Accounts customers. After initial training, the franchisee must sign up for the program and service referred National Accounts work under the contract and Operations Manual rules; direct rate negotiation requires franchisor authorization. Source: 2026 FDD, Item 12, pp. 53–54.
How does work move through a BrightStar Care Agency?
The FDD’s Operations Manual table of contents identifies a specific operating sequence: client care operations, the Living Room Visit and clinical admission, scheduling, care delivery, discharge/service hold, billing, and reportable events. BrightStar Care’s public care process also describes scheduling a Living Room Visit, customizing a care plan, and beginning care.
- Actor
- Full-time salesperson, agency office staff, franchisor marketing and National Accounts teams.
- Action
- Generate local referrals and approved advertising; receive direct inquiries or franchisor-controlled National Accounts referrals.
- System/asset
- Approved marketing library, required SEM/PPC vendor where used, brand website/call channels, ABS customer records.
- Output
- A qualified inquiry or referral routed into the agency’s intake process.
- Actor
- Agency care team and clinical leadership, including the Director of Nursing where clinical oversight applies.
- Action
- Schedule the Living Room Visit, assess client needs, determine authorized services and establish the care plan or staffing requirement.
- System/asset
- ABS customer management, clinical records and applicable licensed-provider orders.
- Output
- A defined plan of care, service scope or staffing assignment requirement.
- Actor
- Franchisee, Control Person, branch/operations manager and Director of Nursing.
- Action
- Hire and maintain qualified employees, confirm credentials and match client or facility requirements to employee skills and availability.
- System/asset
- ABS employee management and scheduling, designated learning-management software, approved screening resources.
- Output
- A staffed visit, shift or case schedule ready for service delivery.
- Actor
- Trained and qualified agency employees; the FDD prohibits independent contractors from performing patient care services.
- Action
- Provide companion, personal or skilled in-home care, or fill institutional staffing assignments, subject to licensure and the applicable plan of care.
- System/asset
- Approved supplies, ABS Mobile where used, and state EVV when required for an applicable program.
- Output
- Completed visits, shifts and documented care or staffing activity.
- Actor
- Agency administrative personnel using franchisor-designated technology and revenue-cycle processes.
- Action
- Record hours and tasks, generate billing and payroll data, maintain accounting records and process collections.
- System/asset
- Athena Business System, Microsoft Dynamics GP and designated revenue cycle management services, currently True North.
- Output
- Recorded Net Billings, payroll data, receivables and accounting information.
- Actor
- Control Person, Director of Nursing, agency team and franchisor support functions.
- Action
- Monitor care, address complaints, adjust care plans, maintain required records and support accreditation and quality processes.
- System/asset
- ABS reports, Operations Manual, clinical processes and Joint Commission-related quality requirements where applicable.
- Output
- Updated care instructions, compliance records, corrective actions and repeat-service readiness.
Can the owner step out of daily operations?
Not by default. Item 15 requires a designated Control Person’s direct supervision, with the owner initially serving unless BrightStar Franchising, LLC approves someone else. The Control Person must live within a one-hour drive, be in the office or Protected Territory on a daily full-time basis, complete initial training, direct business affairs and have contract-signing authority.
A franchisee may request approval for an operating manager to become the Control Person. The Agency must maintain a full-time salesperson making daily sales calls, and Item 7 requires an RN Director of Nursing working at least 20 hours per week. The franchisee—not the franchisor—selects employees, sets pay, schedules hours, assigns work and controls employment terms.
The 2026 FDD does not grant a general absentee-operation right. Manager-run operation requires franchisor approval of a replacement Control Person who meets then-current standards. The official BrightStar Care franchise FAQ describes a possible shift toward higher-level ownership only after a management structure is established; the FDD remains the contractual control.
How do standard, Small and Medium Density Market territories differ operationally?
All three use the BrightStar Care Agency Program, but the 2026 agreements alter staffing, office and performance requirements by territory configuration. The Protected Territory is defined by ZIP codes. A standard territory typically contains 200,000–300,000 people and at least 15,000 people age 65 or older; Small and Medium Density Market territories contain fewer than 200,000 people.
| Configuration | Protected Territory | Operating variation | Performance mechanism |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | Typically 200,000–300,000 population; minimum 15,000 age 65+. | Standard office and key-position requirements apply. | Monthly Performance Standards begin after the initial no-minimum period. |
| Small | Less than 200,000 population. | Control Person may hold two of the three Key Positions, but not all three. | Separate Small-territory Monthly Performance Standards apply. |
| Medium Density Market | Less than 200,000 population. | 2026 addendum ties the Agency to a Primary Agency and may waive separate office and salesperson requirements if stated growth conditions are met. | No Monthly Performance Standards under the Medium Density Market Addendum. |
Source: 2026 FDD, Item 12, pp. 51–57; Item 15, pp. 62–63; Medium Density Market Addendum, pp. 1–2; Small Territory Addendum, pp. 1–2.
Which systems and suppliers are mandatory?
The Athena Business System (ABS) is mandatory and cannot be replaced with substitute software. The FDD also requires Microsoft Dynamics GP, designated learning-management software, revenue cycle management services currently identified as True North, required technology infrastructure and security controls. BrightStar Technology Group, LLC supports ABS, while the franchisor reserves contractual access to information collected through ABS, Great Plains and other agency software.
Designated or approved sources also apply to specified medical supplies, marketing materials, credit-card processing, payroll unless an alternative is approved, drug screening, insurance brokerage, email, signs and uniforms. SEM/PPC advertising must use the required vendor partner. A franchisee may request another supplier, but BrightStar Franchising, LLC may refuse or later revoke approval.
The system separates local employer decisions from franchisor-controlled brand, technology and channel rules.
Franchisee
- Hire, schedule, compensate and supervise agency employees.
- Investigate and maintain state-specific licenses and legal compliance.
- Choose local prices except where National Accounts pricing applies.
- Maintain local hardware and mobile devices.
- Develop local referral relationships within territory rules.
Franchisor
- Define authorized services, reimbursement sources and operating standards.
- Approve the site, suppliers, marketing materials and alternative payroll vendors.
- Control National Accounts designation, contracts and pricing structures.
- Mandate ABS, technology changes and Operations Manual updates.
- Administer the General Marketing Fund and approved marketing libraries.
Affiliates and third parties
- BrightStar Technology Group, LLC supports ABS and related technology.
- Designated vendors provide accounting, revenue-cycle, payroll or screening functions.
- State EVV aggregators may receive required visit data.
- Joint Commission accreditation affects the clinical operating path after stated triggers.
- National Accounts customers impose contract-specific service requirements.
Sources: 2026 FDD, Items 8, 11, 12, 15 and 16. See also BrightStar Care’s official advanced technology overview and franchise support overview.
How protected is the Protected Territory?
The protection is limited. BrightStar Franchising, LLC agrees not to open or authorize another BrightStar Care Agency using the Marks inside a compliant franchisee’s Protected Territory, but referral sources are non-exclusive. Staffing outside the territory requires written permission and, excluding National Accounts, outside-territory business generally cannot exceed 25% of monthly Net Billings.
The franchisee receives no independent e-commerce right and cannot establish an independent website using the Marks. National Accounts rights also override ordinary local exclusivity: if a franchisee lacks required licensure, declines qualifying work or has specified service failures, the franchisor may authorize another franchisee, company-owned location or independent provider inside the Protected Territory.
What does the current outlet mix show?
Item 20 reports 427 total U.S. outlets at the end of 2025: 396 franchised and 31 company-owned. The total increased from 378 at the end of 2023 to 408 at the end of 2024 and 427 at the end of 2025. Item 20 reports franchised and company-owned outlets as separate populations.
Exact Item 20 year-end counts; franchised and company-owned outlets reconcile to the 427-outlet total.
Interpretation: nearly all BrightStar Care outlets are franchised, so most day-to-day employment, local sales and service execution occurs under franchisee control inside a franchisor-defined operating system.
Source: 2026 FDD, Item 20, Table 1, pp. 89–90. Reporting date: year ended 2025; most recent fiscal year end December 28, 2025.
Which operating questions remain location-specific?
The largest unresolved variable is not the core BrightStar Care workflow; it is the state-specific license and payer path. Skilled care, Medicaid, Medicaid Waiver programs, Medicare Advantage supplemental benefits, EVV integrations, Certificates of Need and other healthcare requirements vary by jurisdiction. The FDD makes the franchisee responsible for determining which licenses, technologies and procedures apply locally.
- Licensure: Confirm which companion, personal, skilled-care, staffing and employment-agency licenses apply in the specific Protected Territory.
- Clinical scope: Verify which skilled services can legally be provided and what Director of Nursing staffing level local law requires.
- Payer path: Confirm whether the intended Medicaid, Medicaid Waiver, Medicare Advantage or VA programs are permitted and what EVV or CMS-related technology they require.
- Territory configuration: Verify whether the offered territory is standard, Small or Medium Density Market and which addendum modifies staffing, office and performance rules.
- National Accounts: Confirm current qualification, service-level and equipment requirements for the specific National Accounts opportunities expected in that market.
Where can the public operating model be cross-checked?
Operating-model synthesis. BrightStar Care converts local consumer demand, referral relationships and National Accounts referrals into scheduled home-care visits, skilled-care cases and institutional staffing assignments. The franchisee’s most important operating responsibility is building and managing the local employee organization while maintaining licensure and clinical compliance. The strongest franchisor dependency is the combination of the Operations Manual, ABS, designated technology/suppliers and National Accounts control. The most important format distinction is the staffing and office flexibility available in Small and Medium Density Market territories. The largest item to verify locally is the precise license, payer and EVV path required to deliver the intended service mix.