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Below are our latest blog and news entry's
The End for the Deferred Payments Scheme?
Last updated 06-Jan-2012 11:27
Is the Deferred Payments Scheme to cease with care providers being asked to pick up the cost of funding those whose property has not yet sold? Rumours about the activities of a local authority in the east of England suggest this may be the case.
We understand that an authority in eastern England has been telephoning care homes stating that the deferred scheme will no longer be offered and asking if they will be prepared to defer their fees until the property is sold.
Clever
The DPS costs councils a lot of money. Although this is a loan and the money is returned, it is interest free and ties up limited resources.
This is a clever arrangement by the authority concerned. They have a legal obligation to consider people for the DPS but would have no reason to do this if care homes did not ask for payment during the period the DPS would otherwise apply.
Risk
Before agreeing to such an arrangement care providers need to think carefully about the risks involved. They could effectively find themselves as unsecured lenders with debts of tens of thousands of pounds. What happens if the property has not sold after 18 months or if the person in care dies and the family refuse to sell the property? Are care providers able to charge interest to at least offset the overdraft costs they are likely to incur and can they charge extra to cover bad debt and legal costs?
Other Solutions
The DPS is ideal when offered because it is relatively low cost to set up and interest free, providing the loan is repaid promptly after the property sale or death. In cases where the DPS is not available we have access to funds that can be lent against a property. These are subject to the property being acceptable and on the market as well as the usual financial checks. Please ask for details.
Request our literature for your care home here
Your experience
We are keen to establish whether the incident above is a one-off or whether other care providers have had similar experiences and with which authorities. Please enter your experiences or comments below.
Posted in The carefeesadvice Blog | 2 comments added
Government Must Make Care Funding a Top priority
Last updated 03-Jan-2012 16:55
Failing Social Care Services are robbing the elderly of their dignity according to an open letter to the Prime Minister published in todays (3rd January 2012) Daily Telegraph.
It also points out the economic cost in terms of people who are forced to leave work to provide care for a relative as well as the number of avoidable admissions to NHS hospitals.
The letter urges the Prime Minister to resume all party talks on the future of care funding to consider the future of care funding and how those costs will be met. Especially in light of the promise following the Dilnot report into care funding, to issue a White Paper in the Spring.
The full text of the letter can be read here.
Posted in The carefeesadvice Blog | Add a comment
Care Funding Advice ~ "I learned more about care in the last hour than I have in the past seven months!"
Last updated 08-Nov-2011 10:47
When you need care funding advice what’s it like to have a visit from one of our advisers? Here Kim Hine who provides care funding advice for the Care Fees Advice Agency in Buckinghamshire explains...
I recently met with a lovely couple that wanted to see me about her mother’s situation. Mum had given her permission for them to seek advice on her behalf.
They have access to the internet, had input from Social Services and local surgery but felt they were still floundering with finding out relevant information. As it is normally a one off occasion that families need to help elderly relatives with their care situation, they find it difficult to know where to start.
We had a general chat about mother’s position and they gave me a lot of background information and clarified the family situation. It became clear that Mum’s mental health had deteriorated after a hip replacement early in the year and she had become isolated after friends had found it difficult to deal with her mental health issues. She had been in respite care for a couple of weeks in the summer whilst her daughter and son in law had a holiday and she is coming around to the idea of a permanent move to a care home. Her daughter has had to give up her part-time job as she needs to see Mum every day, providing her with food (although she does have Meals on Wheels), laundry and personal hygiene assistance. Mum has savings in excess of £23,250 having previously sold her home and is now renting, so she would need to fund her own care when required.
I discussed the Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) with them – most solicitors would be able to deal with this, but in particular members of Solicitors for the Elderly have a great deal of experience in this field. This would be appropriate whilst Mum still had capacity to appoint attorneys and I suggested that this is discussed with Mum urgently and set in place, if at all possible. If Mum does not have sufficient capacity then a Deputy could be appointed by the Court of Protection, but this could mean it may not be who Mum would wish to appoint.
Attendance Allowance had not been applied for and so I provided the contact number for the Benefits Line and recommended that they get the paperwork to apply for the lower rate of £49.30 per week, as Mum required some level of care in the daytime. This is a non-means tested benefit.
We discussed a domiciliary care plan at home, which they did not think would be appropriate. So we talked about finding the right care home, the main criteria being relatively local so that family could visit easily. However, on visiting a number of homes, it was clear how different they are. It really depends what Mum wants; whether that is small or large; lots of activity or quiet; the type of room; old property or modern and of course the cost. It was also necessary to think about the future as Mum may need EMI (elderly mentally infirm) care or possibly nursing care at some point, so if she could stay in the same home, the family thought that this would be preferable. I suggested that Mum considers another few weeks of respite, so that she could get the feel for the selected home and if it was not appropriate they could reconsider another home.
Once the decision has been made for Mum to go into care, I will give the care funding advice options for paying for her care – as we will be in a known position for income and fees. In the meantime I talked the family through the options, in principle – giving advantages and disadvantages of each. They could then broach this with Mum and hopefully answer her questions, although I would be more than happy to meet with her. Their main concern was for Mum to have the care she needed for her lifetime, they were not really worried about their inheritance.
At the end of our meeting they told me that they had learned more in the last hour than they had in the last seven months! They also said that it had been helpful just to unload onto someone who was not directly involved. Of course this is what I deal with day in and day out, but I was delighted to be able to assist with their current needs and to be able to work with them in the future.
Posted in The carefeesadvice Blog | 1 comment added
West Sussex Carewise Launch
Last updated 21-Oct-2011 19:18
The scheme backed by Age UK West Sussex, the West Sussex Forum, West Sussex County Council and the Society of Later Life Advisers (SOLLA). It is designed to provide help and advice to those self-funding their care by putting them in touch with relevant advice partners.
The Care Fees Advice Agency is one of the first companies to become an approved Carewise Care Funding Adviser. This means that we have met the following criteria in addition to our normal Financial Services Authority regulation:
- We are members of the Society of Later Life Advisers (SOLLA) through the achievement of the Later Life Adviser Accreditation.
~ We have undergone an enhanced Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check
~ We have passed a trading standards audit and joined Trading Standards Buy With Confidence Scheme
~ We have completed Safeguarding Adults at Risk training.
These additional requirements are designed to provide confidence in your referrals to Carewise advisers. If you would like to know more please call 01903 550184 or email us here.
For more information about the scheme please see the West Sussex Carewise pages. The Care Fees Advice Agency Carewise pages are here.
Posted in The carefeesadvice Blog | Add a comment
Alarming NHS failing in Basic Care for the Elderly
Last updated 13-Oct-2011 16:39
A report from the Care Quality Commission today showed that of 100 hospitals visited 55 raised concerns over care whilst 20 were failing to provide adequate nutrition and dignity for their elderly patients It described its findings as ’alarming’.
Where problems were found these were the issues raised:
- - Patients’ privacy not being respected – for example, curtains and screens not being closed properly.
- Call bells being put out of patients’ reach, or not answered soon enough.
- Staff speaking to patients in a dismissive or disrespectful way.
- Patients not being given the help they needed to eat.
- Patients being interrupted during meals and having to leave their food unfinished.
Download a copy of the report here
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