What is Long Term Care?

Long term care is the term given to routine care given provided to individuals either in their own  home, in community settings or residential care homes, either by family or professional carers to help with everyday activities such as eating, bathing and dressing necessitated because of chronic illness, disability or frailty.

Basic Points

• Long Term Care  which primarily requires nursing, is free and provided by the NHS.
  
  
• Whereas care which primarily requires personal or social care rather than nursing, is the responsibility of the Local Authority in which the person lives or lived prior to the need arising, and is means tested. This means that the Local Authority depending on your financial position, can ask you to pay either for all of the cost or at least make a contribution towards it.
  
  
• If your need is primarily for personal or social care you only qualify for the maximum local authority contribution if, during the financial year 2007/8, your capital is less than £13,000 in England and N.Ireland, (£12,500 in Scotland or £17,250 in Wales).  See means testing.
  
  
• Even then the Local Authority can take all bar £20.45 (England and Scotland) Personal Expenses Allowance per week of your pensions and any benefits you are entitled to, in order to help reimburse themselves for the costs they are paying. See means testing.
  
  
• If your capital is greater than £13,000 in England and N.Ireland, (£12,500 in Scotland or £17,250 in Wales).the they convert anything over these limits into a notional “tariff income” on the basis of every £250 =£1 extra weekly income. This is then taken in addition to actual income (with the exception of the Personal Expenses Allowance) to reimburse the Local Authority. See means testing.
  
  
• If you have personal and half of any joint capital in total exceeding £21,500 England and N. Ireland , £22,00 Wales, £20,750 Scotland (2007/8), and your primary need for care is personal or social, you will be expected to meet all the costs yourself until your capital drops below this.
  
  
• Local Authorities cannot dictate which residential home you receive your Long term care in, they will provide you with a list of registered homes in your area for you to select one. However should you choose a home which charges more than the local authority agreed rate, then your family will need to pay the difference –so called “third party top ups” and will need to make arrangements with the home to pay these fees directly to them.
  
  
• With typical weekly costs of care running into hundreds of pounds, to ensure continuity of care and to try and preserve some capital, it pays to get professional care fees funding advice.
  
• Advice on Care is a specialist Independent Long Term Care fees adviser which aims to provide you with easy to understand guidance on the rules surrounding Long Term Care and to the offer you impartial advice on all methods of funding for care, including finding the cheapest quotes from all providers for any Long Term Care Immediate needs annuity.

Please now browse our site to find out more about Long Term Care, or simply the button below to complete our online enquiry form and one of our professional advisers will call you back.