Acquisitions and Disposals (Details)	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2012
LHCG XXXIII, LLC [Member]
Summary of the acquisitions
Ownership Percentage	70.00%
State of operations	TX
Acquisition Date	Jul. 01, 2012
Methodist HomeCare [Member]
Summary of the acquisitions
Ownership Percentage	70.00%
State of operations	TX
Acquisition Date	Jul. 01, 2012

Date when the business acquisition agreement was executed, in CCYY-MM-DD format.

No definition available.

Name:	us-gaap_BusinessAcquisitionDateOfAcquisitionAgreement1
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:dateItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration