Tag Archives: Dilnot
The ticking time bomb of elderly care costs
There is a postcode lottery in this county on care
OVER the last week, the reality of perhaps this county’s greatest challenge — how are we going to pay for the care of our increasing number of older people – has begun to dawn.
And as I have written before, I regard this challenge as Gloucestershire’s demographic time bomb.
Now, that time bomb really is ticking.
But I am afraid that the government promises when they announced their White Paper on care for the elderly last week seem to be very hollow.
Age UK response to Social Care White Paper
On Wednesday, the Government finally published its Social Care White Paper.
Source : Age UK
Published on 11 July 2012 01:00 PM
On Wednesday, the Government finally published its Social Care White Paper.
Age UK warmly welcomes the Government’s plans to reform the care system, although we are disappointed the Government did not set out how the changes will be funded and delayed the decision to the Comprehensive Spending Review expected next year.
If funding is forthcoming, today’s announcement is welcome news for the millions of care users now and in the future, and is something Age UK has been working towards for many years, most recently through our Care in Crisis campaign.
The main proposals for reform are listed below:
Improving access to social care
Introduction of a national eligibility criteria ensuring minimum level of support and continuity of care, portable between local authority areas.
Decision on social care funding in England facing delay
The government is to agree in principle to cap the amount elderly and disabled people in England pay towards the cost of social care, when it publishes plans on the issue next week.
But there will be no final agreement on how to fund the changes, and a decision will not be made until the spending review expected late next year.
Labour said talks to try to secure a cross-party consensus had broken down.
The health secretary said ministers were committed to continuing talks.
Last July, a review chaired by economist Andrew Dilnot put forward a raft of ideas for changes to adult social care funding in England.
The most notable of these was a £35,000 cap on what people should pay before they get help from the state.
