09.07.12
Minimum care standards to end ‘postcode lottery’
A new national eligibility threshold will be introduced to set minimum care standards each elderly person is entitled to, as the Government prepares to unveil social care reform this Wednesday.
New rules on portability will ensure care is provided as soon as elderly people arrive in a new area, with councils expected to assess new arrivals before they move and required to offer basic help.
These changes will act to eliminate the ‘postcode lottery’ of care in theUKand make it easier for elderly people to move around the country. The threshold for minimum care is set to be introduced from 2015.
Most councils currently limit their means tested support to people with ‘substantial’ care needs – and some only offer care for those with ‘critical’ need – and the level of support available varies across the country.
Health secretary Andrew Lansley said: “No one should fear moving house or areas because they are worried that they will lose out on vital care and support. By bringing in measures to ensure continuity of care when people move, they will no longer feel trapped.
“We know the current system of eligibility is confusing and unclear. By introducing a minimum eligibility threshold, people will have a much clearer picture of what to expect and not see access to care vary depending on where they live.”
The Government is also to announce its acceptance of the broad principles of the Dilnot review, which proposes a £1.7bn scheme for funding long term care, but how this should be funded has not yet been decided.
It will publish a progress report to review available funding. Labour has criticised the Government for failing to include opposition input in the progress report on how to fund social care for the elderly.
Shadow health secretary Andy Burnham told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “This decision to go down this separate route and do their own report reflects a decision to put the reform of the funding of social care on a slower timetable.
“A cap is meaningless if there is no plan to deliver it. How is it going to be paid for? What is the timetable to put it in place?”
Michelle Mitchell, charity director general of Age UK, said: “If the Government accepts the Dilnot recommendations in principle that is definitely a step forward and welcome, but with care in crisis now it is not nearly enough.
“The Government must set out the process by which it will make the all important decisions about funding social care, including timescales and milestones. That is the very least older people and their families will be looking for next week.”
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