Changes to social care cap could see Yorkshire bear greater burden of 'catastrophic' care costs, report warns

A cap on lifetime social care costs has been announced from October next year set at £86,000, which originally included any means-tested support covered by council funding.

Now, with proposals to count only personal contributions, warnings have been issued that older people with “modest” assets would have to contribute for longer towards their care.

According to a new report from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) and the Health Foundation, people in areas where wealth tends to be lower would see the biggest erosion of protection against hefty care costs.

Costs

David Sturrock, a senior research economist at IFS, said the new social care cap was important not just for those facing large care costs but as a “peace of mind” for people looking to plan.

He said: “The government’s proposed amendment would significantly reduce those benefits for those with moderate assets and income.

"This disproportionately affects those in the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber and the Midlands, given lower house prices and wealth levels in those regions compared to the South of England.

“This change seems to cut across the government’s plans to ‘level up’ across regions.”

The report, funded by the Health Foundation, finds that amendments would impact most strongly on those older people with modest levels of wealth of around £75,000 to £150,000.

For someone with around £110,000 in assets, including their home, they would lose 78 per cent of their total wealth to pay for their care even after the cap is in place. In comparison, someone with £500,000 in assets could use up only 17 per cent.

According to the briefing, those who receive support with care costs would have to contribute for longer to meet the cap than those with more wealth.

Those with costly care journeys, and who would be eligible for means-tested support, could spend more.

The changes to the Care Act were proposed in November and are now being considered by Parliament.

Impact

Charles Tallack is assistant director for the Health Foundation’s Research and Economic Analysis for the Long term (REAL) Centre.

With Parliament so far “voting in the dark on this”, his hope is for the report to shed light on the amendment’s potential impact.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “For the first time in history we are stopping people having to pay unlimited quantities for their care. We are investing an additional £5.4 billion over three years to begin a comprehensive programme of reform of adult social care.

“Compared to the current system more people will be supported with their social care costs, have greater certainty over what they need to pay and receive higher quality care."

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