Increase in care home fees

[CraigC]

Hi All,

It is that time of year, just when you think you've budgetted for the next six months the yearly care home fee increases land on the doormat.

Is it me, or are the increases this year particulary high? Both mum and dad are in a home. One home has increased the fees by £108/month and the other by £180 / month.

Has anyone else seen big hikes this year? And does anyone know if care homes are under any regulation / control when increasing fees?

Kind Regards
Craig

p.s. Please do not post the names of care homes, this is just a general question.

 

[sophie123]

Hi,

My mother's care home fees have increased by 3% - going up £96 per month - i don't know if this is standard. Whatever the case, I dread to think what the fees will be like in a few years time...hope this helps.

Sophie

 

[yvonne j]

are you trying to apply for NHS contiuing care? Its hard work but I am still trying.

 

[CraigC]

Hi Yvonne,

If you run a forum search on 'continuing' you will see plenty of threads/discussions on this subject.

The answer is yes, but best check the multitude of threads on this subject.

kind regards
Craig

 

[connie]

Craig, you have me worried now. Lionel's home only opened on the 1st Sept.06 so any increase will not come about until Sept 07. Seing the increases in print here are of great concern. I am only allowing myself to think 12 months at a time. Head in sand approach, but cannot take any more mental stress. Bad enough living day to day.

 

[Jude]

NH Care Fees

Hi All,

Some information that may be of benefit to members of TP:

If you hold Power of Attorney for a parent whose sum total assets are less than 21,000 pounds then you can apply directly to Social Services to have them conduct a means test. You will need to provide bank statements, together with evidence of bank balances [if any] and the SS should then take over payment of Care Home fees - or at least meet the difference between the pension paid and the balance that the Care Home requires per month.



Jude

 

[Clive]

Hi Craig and Yvonne

1 Our increase this year for an EMI Residential home is £190 per month or 8%.
They blame increasing requirements of care standards commission and training costs plus wage increases.

2. Yes we have applied for a review by the NHS PCT for NHS continuing care.
We don’t expect to get it as there seems to be an assumption that Residential does not included nursing, but we shall see what happens.

I am also already regularly speaking to my MP and my mums MP. Though I think mum should have NHS continuing care for her Alzheimer’s, if she not going to get it I think the Social Services payments should be fair for all.


I do not understand why, just because her husband died before she did, the house has to be used for fees. If the partner is still alive it does not have to be used to pay the Home fees.

My parents bought a small cheap house and saved their money. This means mum did not qualify for the first 12 weeks free as do people who have a big expensive house and no savings.

The next door neighbour used equity release so when she sells her house she will only receive £50k. She has spent the equity release money from the house on a long holiday and a new car. Now if she goes into care she will get her lifetimes care for only about £30k.

Etc etc.


The system does not make sense. It needs to be fair to all. We all must make a fuss to change it.

 

[CraigC]

Hiya Jude, nice to see your friendly avatar

Regarding care home fees.

I've been told that once mum and dads assets fall below £12,750 (e.g. after the house sale money is used) then the SS will still only pay up to a certain amount. E.G Each local authority has a ceiling - about £420 per week.

e.g. for each parent

£420 - (state pension) - (private pension) - (nursing fees depends on banding).

So if the care home charges more than £420 per week. I need to pick up the top up fees (in this case on both homes).

For example, say the care home charges £900 per week. I need to pay £900 - (£420 - (state pension) - (private pension) - (nursing fees depends on banding). So I need to pick up the bill of approx £480 per week top up. OR we find a cheaper home OR we let the social services do this for us and find a home of their choice for mum and dad.​

If mum or dads assets fall below £21000, then the local authority (Social Services) will only pay a proportion of the £420 figure. That's when it gets even more complicated.

As you can imagine, with selling the house to fund care and with both mum and dad in care, I need to get my maths absolutely clear as eventually the money will run out. I will need to either fund the top up myself OR leave mum and dad totally in the hands of the local authority and they will be resonsible to find somewhere 'suitable'. Obviously, what I'd prefer to do is leave them in the homes that we've found and that they are comfortable in. Life is stressful enough without moving those you love from pillar to post.

This is about the most complicated area of finance I've come across in my life. I'm no expert by any means and seem to get different information where ever I go. So anyone, please correct me if I'm wrong and tell me if some local authorities do indeed have ceiling.

Kind Regards
Craig

p.s. Please note that these limits are different for Scotland and Wales and with continuing care you should get full nursing funding.

 

[noelphobic]

The only thing I can think of is that some homes do charge less for local authority funded residents - ie my mum's home charges approximately £575 per week for self funded residents but only £450 per week for local authority residents. Have you enquired as to whether that is the case in either of your mum and dad's respective homes?

Brenda

 

[CraigC]

Hi Brenda,

My understanding is that many private homes keep a one or two beds that the local authority use.

Pretty sure these are only discounted as they get money for the local authority, whether or not these rooms are use - a kind of guaranteed income. Some homes use these for respite only.

But the remainder of the private rooms are charged at the higher rates.

thanks
Craig

 

[noelphobic]

I was just thinking that it may be that when your parents are classed as local authority funded then the home could only charge what they charge other local authority funded residents, and therefore the fees would be slightly lower, although probably not as low as the la 'ceiling' amount.

My understanding is that there are very few council owned homes still around - they have certainly all closed down in our area - so the only provision is private homes. I would imagine that it is highly likely that any remaning council run homes will either close or go private within the next few years.

 

[mocha]

Care Home Fees

Quote:
For example, say the care home charges £900 per week. I need to pay £900 - (£420 - (state pension) - (private pension) - (nursing fees depends on banding). So I need to pick up the bill of approx £480 per week top up. OR we find a cheaper home OR we let the social services do this for us and find a home of their choice for mum and dad


Do people really pay £900 per week.???

Thank goodness I live in our home.

Cheers Aileen

 

[noelphobic]

I get the impression that care homes down South are generally a lot more expensive than those up North.

 

[CraigC]

Yes.

Sorry, I should have said, we live in South West london and mum is in nursing. £900 is about average for nursing homes in the area. We actually pay more that this at the moment. Residential and dementia EMI is average about £650 in south west london, but that is with minimal nursing. This has been my experience in this area.

Unbelievable I know, but true.