Dilnot´s £27.40 a Night Hotel
To get accommodation, three meals a day, laundry and all the other services a care home offers for £27.40 a night seems exceptional value. So we set our minds to thinking about how the government might achieve this?
All of our suggestions would work, but each would cause significant problems for care providers.
1. Cap Charges
The government could cap the amount that care providers can charge residents. Problems:
a) This would effectively be nationalisation of the care industry and many care homes would not be able to cover their costs and would close.
b) This model makes no distinction between the cost of running, for example, a small basic home in a rural town, a home in central London or a luxury country house style home.
2. Pay the Difference
The Government could pay the difference between £27.40 and what the care home charges. For example, a luxury home might charge £100 a night, with the resident contributing £27.40 and the state paying £72.60. This raises some other issues:
a) If the cost to the resident is always £27.40, any business minded care home will increase its fees significantly as they are guaranteed to be paid by the state.
b) Why would anyone choose to move to a more basic care home when a luxury home would cost them exactly the same?
3. Contribute Towards the Cost
The Government could agree to contribute a maximum amount. So, for example, they could offer to pay £50 a night, including the resident’s contribution. This raises other problems:
a) No care provider would ever charge less than £50 a night because the cost to their resident will always remain at £27.50.
b) This is no longer a cap on ‘hotel’ charges, just a contribution of £22.60 a night.
This appears to be another slice of the Fairer Care Funding report that has not been thought through properly. If you can think of ways in which this cap can work, or have other comments, please leave them below.
Posted in The carefeesadvice Blog
2 responses to 'Dilnot´s £27.40 a Night Hotel'
Added 08-Feb-2012 12:10
A really good simple and clear explanation of the pros and cons, regarding General Power of Attorney. I’m sure that there are many people that will find it much easier to understand and make an informed decision. It’s good to see someone offering information that is easy to get to grips with.
Simon Knights
Added 18-Jul-2011 13:26
I work at a care provider and we are concerned and worried by this report. There are so many questions that need answering before this goes ahead and it is really difficult to plan for the future of our business.