CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2018
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net service revenue	$ 517,842	$ 502,024	$ 1,020,427	$ 793,078
Cost of service revenue	325,860	321,004	646,852	509,622
Gross margin	191,982	181,020	373,575	283,456
General and administrative expenses	148,584	149,214	293,805	241,245
Other intangible impairment charge	1,018	778	7,337	778
Operating income	42,380	31,028	72,433	41,433
Interest expense	(2,885)	(3,202)	(5,937)	(4,652)
Income before income taxes and noncontrolling interest	39,495	27,826	66,496	36,781
Income tax expense	9,557	7,170	13,157	8,147
Net income	29,938	20,656	53,339	28,634
Less net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	4,938	3,859	9,483	6,842
Net income attributable to LHC Group, Inc.’s common stockholders	$ 25,000	$ 16,797	$ 43,856	$ 21,792
Earnings per share:
Basic (usd per share)	$ 0.81	$ 0.55	$ 1.42	$ 0.90
Diluted (usd per share)	$ 0.80	$ 0.55	$ 1.41	$ 0.89
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic (in shares)	30,960	30,498	30,899	24,179
Diluted (in shares)	31,201	30,742	31,188	24,403