Fairer Care Funding?

The long awaited Dilnot Commission on the Funding of Care and Support set up by the Government last July has published its report today.

Andrew Dilnot, Chair of the Commission said

"The current system is confusing, unfair and unsustainable. People can't protect themselves against the risk of very high care costs and risk losing all of their assets, including their house..."

The main recommendations of the Report are:

The amount of money which a person in can have before they are charged for care should rise from £23,250 to £100,000
The amount any individual should ever have to pay for social (as opposed to nursing) care should be capped between £20,000 and £50,000 (the recommended figure is £35,000)
These criteria should apply throughout the country and the same assessment should apply if someone moves
Children with disabilities moving into adult care should receive free state support immediately

Whilst these recommendations are helpful in progressing the debate on funding for care, it is important to remember:

they only apply social care - most claims for care fee recoveries relate to an incorrect assessment that the care is social rather than nursing
they only apply to England - Scotland and Wales will have different rules
the cap will not be limited at £35,000 - the Commission also recommends that each person should make an annual contribution of £10,000 to general living costs from their pension - for most people this will mean giving up all of their pension.

To read the full report go to http://www.dilnotcommission.dh.gov.uk/2011/07/04/commission-report/

The debate is likely to continue for quite some time and until it is resolved you or a family member may continue to pay for care that you are entitled to reclaim. To find out if you (or a relative) could be eligible to reclaim care home fees, please complete the enquiry form or call us on Freephone 0800 054 2386 for a free, no obligation assessment.