I'm never sure myself whether it's really worth signing online petitions, and there are so many on this topic that they are probably in danger of competing and cancelling each other out. However.........
The demand is for free care for people who need it, for whatever reason. Obviously I'm coming at it from the point of view of someone who cares for a person with dementia but there are many other conditions and diseases that lead to people reaching a point where, if someone doesn't look after them, they will die.
Currently in the UK, you have to pay for this care, unless your income/savings are below a certain point. Care, provided either in a home or 'at home' is incredibly expensive and sometimes not of a very high standard. It is generally provided by private companies, though there are a few charities who also run homes. If you are below the income/savings threshold, the Local Authority usually pay a lower fee than the care hones charge 'self-funders'. Indeed there are grounds for believing that the companies subsidise the Local Authority places via the higher self-funding costs.
There are plans, currently due to come in during 2016, for a different system which might help to ensure that people don't necessarily lose all their savings and sometimes their home in care fees. It is a rather complex scheme!
The petition calls for everyone to be treated equally.
As always, the question is where the money will come from to meet this demand. We would all have different ideas about this, but I think most people know that the way wealth is currently distributed suggests that there are many better choices that could be made in terms of tax and spending.
If you want to read more about this particular petition, follow this link:
Care of the elderly without bias
No comments:
Post a Comment