Three-quarters of the public are prepared to pay 1p extra on income tax in order to fund better and fairer care for older people, according to a YouGov survey published last week. An additional 1p in the pound on income tax would raise £2 billion, which would pay for 80 per cent of all care home fees and for domiciliary care, according to research by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. (more…)

Almost 10 years ago, I was privileged to be asked by the then Health Secretary, Frank Dobson, to be a member of the Royal Commission on Long Term Care Funding; this Commission was set up by the incoming Labour government to fulfil an election pledge. (more…)

People are confused about what they can expect from the state in helping them pay for long-term care should they need it. We now need a system that has much clearer entitlements. In designing such a system, we need to make some basic choices clear to the public. The most important question is: do we want to provide a foundation of state-funded care for everyone, or should state help go only to the least well-off? (more…)

Little has changed one year on from the publication last year of my review of social care for older people for the King’s Fund, except perhaps a greater awareness of the depth of the crisis. The challenges it posed have not been taken up with necessary urgency, and social care has missed out as attention and money have been directed elsewhere. (more…)