Care Act 2014: Cap on care costs and appeals – Have your say

Overview

The way people pay for care and support is being reformed because the current system simply does not work for today’s society. It is outdated, becoming increasingly unfair and seen as not able to provide people with the protection and support they deserve.
The current system for paying for care and support is based on laws written more than 65 years ago, developed at a time when few people lived into their seventies, and fewer needed care and support.
Our society has changed a lot since then. Many more people live into their 80s and older. These extra years of life are to be celebrated and is one of the success stories of our NHS – but they also mean people are more likely to need more care and support, and need it for longer.
As a result, many older people and people with disabilities can face catastrophic and potentially ruinous bills for their care and support. Whilst those unable to pay for their own care and support receive help from their local authorities, those who have bought their home or have assets of more than £23,250 may not be eligible for help and risk having to spend up to 80 per cent of their assets to pay for their care.

Why are we consulting

The cap on care costs, to be  set at £72,000, will come into force with the Care Act 2014. The Department of Health is asking for your views on:

• its draft regulations and guidance on how to implement the cap on care costs
• its policy proposals for a new appeals system for care and support

These changes will affect the 1 in 8 people who will face care costs. Click here Caponcarecosts to read the full proposals.
The consultation will start tomorrow, February 5th at 12:00am and the deadline for  submissions is 11:45pm on March 30th 2015.
Here are the questions the Department of Health would like you to answer.
1.  Do you agree that the draft regulations and guidance will provide a robust framework that will protect the 1 in 8 of us that will face catastrophic care costs? Please state yes or no along with any rationale.
2.  Do you agree that independent personal budgets should generally be set according to an average of personal budgets allocated to people with similar levels of need? Please state yes or no along with any rationale.
3. Is the guidance sufficiently clear as to the principles for calculating independent personal budgets? Please state yes or no along with any rationale.
4. Does the draft guidance provide sufficient clarity about the operation of care accounts to ensure consistency between local authorities and reduce the risk of challenge? Please state yes or no along with any rationale.
5. Can more be done to ensure that the care account is a useful tool to support people in planning for care costs?
6. Do you agree that the preferred option best meets the principles and priorities identified? Please state yes or no along with any rationale.
7. What are your views on how people of working age can be supported further to enable them to save and plan?
8. Is there evidence to support further consideration of the level and/or approach to daily living costs? Please state yes or no along with any rationale and provide any evidence you may have to support the rationale.
9. Do you agree that the extension of the existing requirements for third party top-ups to cover first party top-ups will provide both the local authority and the person with the necessary clarity and protection? Please state yes or no along with any rationale.
10. Do you agree that the guidance is clear on how the extensions to the means test will work and that the draft regulations achieve their intended purpose? Please state yes or no along with any rationale.