Jeremy Hunt hints at a social care cap – and wider reforms to the social care system.
In Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt’s first speech since he was also allocated the responsibility of the social care system, he pledged greater reforms to social care and that there would be a social care cap. For some, this could mean a reduction on what they pay towards care.
Hunt warned that elderly people were left feeling passed from “pillar to post” under the current system. The Health Secretary has stated that there will be a Green Paper in the summer which will propose new ways to reform the social care system.
Hunt’s speech focused upon: offering better practical care for families, giving families greater control over integrated personal budgets, and greater security for those who may not know their future care needs or may be facing conditions which will gradually get progressively worse.
However, Hunt has not yet set out a boundary or cap for care costs, although his indications were that this would be looked at in greater depth over the coming months. This means that there is still uncertainty over the future of social care which is unlikely to be resolved before the summer. There is keen interest around this area when thousands of people are in receipt of social care, and sometimes healthcare too. In 2017, the Competition and Markets Authority stated that those who pay for care were paying (on average) £12,000 more than fees paid for by the council.
There is clearly a huge financial strain on people who pay for their care, and the system is currently unsustainable. The number of people in their eighties is set to double within the next twenty years. This is going to see a huge increase in demand for social (and health) care. This is why changes to the system are vital – but they must be the right changes, and not just a shuffling of deckchairs.
Did Hunt skip over NHS Continuing Healthcare?
Hunt also criticised the “randomness and unpredictability of care, and the punitive consequences that can come from developing certain conditions over others”.
He added that people’s futures were being dictated by what diagnosis they received, and it was determining what support they were offered.
People’s financial well-being in old age ends up defined less by their industry and service during their working lives, and more by the lottery of which illness they get,” he said.
“If you develop dementia and require long term residential care, you are likely to have to use a significant chunk of your savings and the equity in your home to pay for care.
“But if you require long term treatment for cancer you won’t face anything like the same cost.”
Hunt gave very little specific attention to NHS Continuing Healthcare in his speech. While there was an indication that people would get more control over their integrated personal care budgets, the Health Secretary seemed to focus on a simplistic idea of the social and healthcare systems when there is a lot of overlap. For instance, if someone is diagnosed with dementia then they may only ever require social care. However, if their needs are later described as arising out of their health and their needs are ‘primary health needs’ and need specialist care, then they could qualify for NHS Continuing Healthcare – which means that their care would be fully funded by the NHS.
The idea that people with dementia always have to pay for care, and would in most cases need their home to contribute towards the cost of that care when cancer patients may not is not an entirely accurate picture. The situation is often much more complex, and each case is meant to be decided on its own facts.
It is important to get a true reflective picture of the state of social care and healthcare; anecdotal evidence from clients suggest that it is the misinformation around NHS Continuing Healthcare that means that so many people do not know what they are entitled to. With greater awareness of NHS Continuing Healthcare funding, more people will have the chance to access the support they are entitled to.
What Does It All Mean?
The Green Paper will be announced in the summer. This will give an outline of potential changes to the social care system and it will give us a much clearer idea of exactly what changes the Government is proposing.
Until then, it seems the Government is looking to potentially make substantial changes to the system but while Hunt may have given an outline, the detail won’t come for several more months yet.
However, we expect discussions around caps on social care, and an examination of how the system works for those with complex care needs and this could also have an impact on NHS Continuing Healthcare.
What Can Just Caring Legal do to help?
As the system stands, you are only eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare (CHC) if you your needs arise out of a‘primary health need.’ Just Caring Legal specialises in NHS CHC, and so if you are concerned that you or a relative may be entitled to fully funded care, and you are not getting the help you need, you can call us now on 0191 556 1078 or email us at [email protected].
We can also recover wrongly paid care fees, so if you may have been wrongly charged a top-up for social care then we can also assist in acquiring your refund. You can contact us today and speak to Roz about your case.