The Conservative Party Manifesto proposes a “Green Paper” (a government consultation document) on Long Term Social Care.
Importantly everyone will get to comment on what is in the paper and the government will listen carefully to all the concerns before setting the final policy. No decision has yet been made
It is important to recognise the challenges facing our current system care of the elderly. There will be two million more people over 75 years old in Britain over the next decade alone. At the moment, many elderly people in need of care face high costs and inadequate treatment. This is a particularly concern in Essex as we have a higher than average population of older people. I am concerned that the social care system will collapse unless we make some important decisions now about how we fund it.
What happens at the moment? Care and support services in England have never been free. Right now, most people have to pay something towards their own care and some already have to pay for all of the costs. People have to pay the full cost of care unless their savings fall below £23,250, at that point they pay part of their cost based on a means test until their savings reach £14,000. Local Councils are responsible for organizing care and charge those with savings above these limits. Furthermore, today, when somebody goes into residential care, the value of the person’s home has always been included when calculating what they have to pay, apart from during the first twelve weeks in care. The present system can be a lottery, with some local authorities also require the payment whilst the person is in the residential home. This has often resulted in people having to sell their own homes, causing real anxiety and worry to those who are in need of care.
What is planned? We plan to launch a full consultation into future funding for adult social care. This consultation includes key principles:
- There will be an absolute limit on what people will need to pay for their care with a cap on the total amount any individual will have to pay.
- People's assets will be protected from the huge costs that can accumulate from elderly care, a minimum of £100,000 will be protected (increased from £23,250).
- No one will have to sell their home within their lifetime to pay for care as deferred payment agreements will be extended for all people getting care.
- More money will be put into health and social care by making the same rules whether the person is in a caring home or being cared for in their own home. This will mean people’s assets are treated equally wherever they are looked after.
- The care system will be improved by increased co-operation between the NHS and the care system, to relieve unnecessary and sometimes unhealthy stays in hospital, We will continue to make best use of specialist housing and new technology approaches which enable people to live independently, with dignity, for longer.
Importantly everyone will get to comment on what is in the paper. The government will listen carefully to the concerns of all of you before setting the final policy, and so will I.
