Care homes cost up to €1,200 per week

NURSING homes in Ireland cost between €600 and €700 a week, rising to €1,200 a week for more luxury-style care.

Dublin is the most expensive location at €600 to €700 a week. In the provinces, costs are proportionately lower: €500 in Munster and about €450 in Connacht and Ulster.

Health boards provide weekly subventions up to a €190 weekly maximum for people who cannot afford to pay the full nursing home fee. Generally, the subvention ranges between €130 and €150 per week.

An “enhanced subsidy” above that range is given in certain cases where the person needing nursing home care cannot meet the cost.

Over the next 20 years, demand for nursing home services is expected to at least double.

By 2031, the average age is projected to increase by 7.5 years. By 2010 there will be an extra 76,000 over-65s, making 503,000.

Currently, there are 26,000 nursing home beds (56% of them private). For a variety of reasons, about 600 beds in private nursing homes are “empty”. According to the Irish Nursing Homes Organisation (INHO) it’s due to the difficulty in people getting the health board subsidies.

INHO says the provision of care for the aged will not nearly match demand and a crisis looms unless a plan is put in place - with emphasis on State support.