21.05.13
‘More to be done’ on funding social care – The King’s Fund
The Government must go beyond Dilnot for funding social care, The King’s Fund has argued in a new report.
‘Paying for social care: Beyond Dilnot’ calls for a stronger focus on the challenge of eligibility to ensure more people can access the right level of support.
The Care Bill will introduce a cap on the amount individuals pay towards the cost of their care, but un-met need will place further pressure on the NHS.
The report recommends proper preparation for the Dilnot proposals, and use of the 2015/16 Spending Review to move towards a single strategic budget settlement for NHS and adult social care, with closer alignment of local authority and CCG budgets. There should also be a fresh debate about the options for funding quantity and quality of care, The King’s Fund suggests.
Richard Humphries, assistant director of policy at The King’s Fund, said: “The Government’s reforms are an important milestone – but there is much more to be done. There needs to be an informed debate so that people understand how they benefit from the changes, and to address the difficult long-term choices that remain about how much we spend on care, and how to fund this.
“We must also think boldly about removing the unhelpful fault lines which exist across health and social care spending. Instead of ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’ by raiding the NHS budget to bail out social care, we need a more ambitious shift towards single-budget settlements for NHS and social care.”
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