The dementia tax: charging people with dementia for inadequate care: the evidence for change

Author:
CHIDGEY Andrew
Publisher:
Alzheimer's Society
Publication year:
2008
Pagination:
78p., bibliog.
Place of publication:
London

The latest report by the Alzheimer's Society makes for sad reading: a survey of more than 2,300 people with dementia and their carers shows that more than 50% of those living in care homes paid in excess of £15,600 a year towards their own care; and only 39% of people received all the help they needed from social services. One in three people looking after someone in their own home pay more than £2,600 a year towards the costs of care. And 77% of carers who take a break from care work need to pay towards it themselves, with a third of those paying more than £150 a week for this.  "Charging has not been a middle-class issue for some time," according to the Alzheimer's Society. The report says 40% of manual and service workers are paying more than £15,600 a year towards care. "The current system of means-testing for social care is a tax on people with dementia whose care is deemed to be social care, rather than healthcare free on the NHS." This distinction is not so obvious. There is no charge for expensive cancer treatment.

Subject terms:
NHS, charges, dementia, health care;
Content type:
research
Link:
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