CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (Unaudited) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2018	Mar. 31, 2017
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net service revenue	$ 291,054	$ 244,249
Cost of service revenue	188,618	154,370
Gross margin	102,436	89,879
General and administrative expenses	92,031	72,011
Operating income	10,405	17,868
Interest expense	(1,450)	(780)
Income before income taxes and noncontrolling interest	8,955	17,088
Income tax expense	977	5,173
Net income	7,978	11,915
Less net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	2,983	2,448
Net income attributable to LHC Group, Inc.’s common stockholders	$ 4,995	$ 9,467
Earnings per share attributable to LHC Group, Inc.'s common stockholders:
Basic	$ 0.28	$ 0.54
Diluted	$ 0.28	$ 0.53
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic	17,789,863	17,643,463
Diluted	18,039,345	17,817,880