Extra £150m freed up to help patients receive care at home

The Government is to provide an extra £150m for patients to receive care at home rather than in hospital.

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said the money had been freed up thanks to efficiency savings in his department’s central budget.

Another £20m is also being made available for the disabled facilities grant, which helps people live independently at home.

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The move follows a warning from charity Age UK that cuts to local authority funding are creating an “absolute crisis” in social care for the elderly.

The influential King’s Fund thinktank has also cautioned that old people are often taking up valuable hospital bed space unnecessarily.

In a report last week, it urged the NHS to cut the number who arrived as emergency cases, but stayed for more than a fortnight – even after they had recovered from the crisis. Failure to tackle the issue could prevent the health service from achieving its target of £20bn in efficiency savings by 2015.

The £150m is in addition to the £648m the Government had already earmarked for primary care trusts (PCTs) to support social care services in 2011-12.

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PCTs and local authorities will be able to decide how best to spend the cash to relieve pressure on hospitals over the busy winter period.

Mr Lansley said: “Savings have been made in the Department of Health’s budget which we are investing to help people leave hospital as quickly as they can, when they are ready, and to receive support at home.

“Older people often need particular support after a spell in hospital to settle back into their homes, recover their strength and regain their independence. This money will enable the NHS and social care to work better together for the benefit of patients.

“This additional investment for health and care services is the result of determination to deliver savings, maintain quality and invest in services that matter to patients and their families and carers during the critical winter season.”

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The DoH will transfer £20m to the Department for Communities, which will distribute extra money for the means-tested disabled facilities grant to local authorities.

Housing Minister Grant Shapps said the funding would “help more older and disabled people continue living in their homes for longer, helping to make a significant impact on their health and wellbeing.

“As patients return home from hospital it is vitally important that they are able to keep as much independence as possible,” he added.