MPs highlight ‘postcode lottery’ in care system
There is a “postcode lottery” currently operating in the residential care system, according to an influential group of MPs.
The Commons Health Select Committee claims that in some places the elderly and chronically ill are being forced to use their savings to pay for residential care, while in other areas the frail and disabled get free beds in care homes.
In a report, the all-party committee said that arbitrary rules mean people can be charged as much as £350 a week per bed for identical conditions to those receiving free care.
The MPs also found that some health authorities pay for NHS nurses for the infirm and disabled living at home, while others refuse, forcing family members to become carers.
The committee called for widespread reform in the “confused” system for funding long-term care in England, claiming there should be a single national framework.
The MPs also suggest merging the residential care system with the National Health Service, noting that it could save millions of pounds a year.
The Government insists that it has already overhauled the system and wants to move towards a single, national system, instead of allowing each regional health authority to set its own rules.
The committee accused ministers of failing to tackle the problem and said that people suffering from mental or psychological illnesses are discriminated against because rules are biased in favour of physical ailments.
Committee chairman David Hinchliffe said: “Despite attempts to address this by successive governments, our evidence suggests the current system is still confusing and inequitable.”
It is estimated that up to one in three women and one in five men will eventually require long-term residential care.
