Health strategy highlighted charging confusion

THE Government’s own health strategy, launched over three years ago, recognised that there was a need to clear up confusion surrounding the financing of care for older people.

Quality and Fairness: A Health System for You, published in November 2001, said the Ombudsman, in his report on the Nursing Home Subvention Scheme, “has drawn attention to the uncertainty surrounding the eligibility of older people for long-term residential care”.

It promised new legislation - to be given “particular attention” - to eliminate the confusion and “provide for clear statutory provisions on entitlement”.