Enhabit Inc. (NYSE: EHAB) CEO Barb Jacobsmeyer has been waiting to helm her own entity for a while now. 

After a long period of Encompass Health (NYSE: EHC) exploring strategic alternatives for its home health and hospice segment – which became Enhabit – Jacobsmeyer and her co-leaders are finally on their own.

Jacobsmeyer was formerly the head of Encompass Health’s inpatient rehab business. Now she’s leading Enhabit, which has 251 home health locations and 100 hospice locations across 34 states.

But it also just so happens that less than two weeks before the spinoff from Encompass Health was set to be completed, one of the worst home health proposed payment rules in the last half decade was released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

At the same time, pandemic-related issues are still hindering home health agencies, as is inflation. On top of all that, recruiting and retaining talent is as hard as it’s ever been.

In Home Health Care News’ last Q&A with Jacobsmeyer in February, she offered up the perspective of a new CEO who was about to take on the challenge of leading her own company.

Now she is in the thick of that challenge. And last week, HHCN sat down with her again to catch up on how things are going for the brand new company, industry issues and a lot more.

The conversation is below, edited for length and clarity.