Your hub for news and views on all issues affecting the health and care sector including regulatory updates, care home and domiciliary news, relevant case law and inquiries.
Think tank proposes free personal care for the over 65s to be funded by tax rise
In light of the government’s promise to publish a Green Paper on social care, the Institute of Public Policy Research has proposed in a new report a 2p tax rise in order to fund free help for elderly. This would include help with basic tasks such as getting up and eating, as well as funding full time care for complex needs such as dementia.
The report compares social care to the NHS model. NHS services are free at the point of access whereas the funding of social care is means tested. The report makes the point that funding for social care has been cut drastically over recent years and that private providers are struggling, meaning that care provision is often fragmented and uncoordinated.
The report proposes three steps to transform elderly care, these being:
Introduce free personal care for the over 65s in England
Full funding for free personal care
Join up health and social care.
The report highlights many obvious benefits to this such as avoiding hospital admissions. What the report doesn’t deal with is where the current private care sector would fit in this model. And the report doesn’t deal explicitly with how to fund staffing for this free provision of care, especially in view of the fact that private care providers can struggle with staffing in light of the impact for example of the Living Wage and the availability of staff.
BLM is an insurance risk and commercial law firm with both a domestic and international focus. We now work with an increasing number of clients, across more lines of business, in more locations throughout the UK and Ireland as well as across the world, than ever before.
Our philosophy is to deliver positive outcomes for our clients and help them make their businesses more successful. Fundamentally we are helping them to reduce the time and money spent on managing risk and resolving disputes, whilst offering a practical, commercial and solutions driven approach to non-contentious business law.
Our transparency of purpose, flexible approach and teamwork has allowed BLM to grow, whilst keeping our clients at the heart of what we do.
We have established a deep-rooted presence in the general insurance sector, the London Market and amongst brokers. We also have a significant presence among corporate businesses many of whom are multi-national, the public sector and the health and care industry.
BLM is widely recognised in client surveys and legal directories as a firm with “its finger on the pulse of the market” and as a “technical powerhouse”.
OUR VISION
To be an agile and creative law business in our chosen markets of insurance and commerce
OUR PROMISE
We provide solutions that are clear and concise; deliver a service that is consistent and reliable; and build connected relationships that are strong and enduring
OUR VALUES
Teamwork - We are in it together to support, implement and achieve
Courage - We have the strength to challenge the conventional, be confident in our actions and inspire along the way
Focus - We ensure clarity of purpose, total commitment, delivering a positive impact
View all posts by BLM