Planned reform to make care home places more affordable
A draft law should be completed by autumn, which would reform the model of care home spot financing, making spots more affordable. The substantive amendment would require funding from the state budget.
The draft law, which will begin regulating care home place pricing components on new grounds, should be completed by October. changing the care home financing model so that the state and local municipality would cover the costs of care home spots.
"It could be real relief for people," Minister of Social Protection Signe Riisalo (Reform) said. "We are looking for a solution in which certain components of the service would be funded by the local municipality government, some components would be funded by the state, mostly healthcare and care components, but people would have to cover some themselves."
Riisalo added that the ministry wants to reach a point where the average pension can be used to acquire a care home spot, adding that the substantive amendments will cost the state some €50 million.
"The timing is quite bad, but I have not been given a better time. Let's hope this goes well aside all these crises," the social protection minister said. "I am also sorry for the authority and experts - the decision was always behind a financing decision, which an official cannot do. With that, we can measure if I was able to do my job or not. But it is difficult."
At the same time, the Riigikogu is also processing a Social Welfare Act, which would release grandchildren having to take care of their grandparents. The act also defines long-term care obligations.
The plan is to reorganize holiday and social tax calculations so that partially employed caregivers would accumulate more pensionable service and thus more income for their future.
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Editor: Kristjan Kallaste