CROSS PARTY CARE TALKS: FORGET POLITICS, FIND SOLUTIONS, SAYS SAGA

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

QUOTES

January 16, 2012.

CROSS PARTY CARE TALKS: FORGET POLITICS, FIND SOLUTIONS, SAYS SAGA.

Over-50s organisation Saga says there is no room for political points-scoring in this week’s cross-party talks on care and support.

“The lives of millions of older people and the future of the NHS is at stake here. Politicians in all parties have an historic opportunity to change the way care is funded in future, to help people stay in their own homes if they can, which is what they overwhelmingly want, and to save money for the NHS by caring for them outside the most expensive hospital settings,” said Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of Saga.

“It is desperately important that MPs take the lead in telling Ministers - who have so far proved disappointingly reluctant to grasp the urgency of the issue - that proper care reform cannot wait. There will be a White Paper in the Spring, but this must deliver a clear framework for immediate reform, with a timeline and action, not more fudge.

“Frontline care professionals are already disappointed at the delays, and we would urge whoever is chairing the meeting to stand for no nonsense, no points-scoring and no further hold-ups.

“There are mortal deadlines here, and this must not be forgotten. We are dealing with our most vulnerable citizens. 2012 must not be their year of living anxiously.

“The government needs to recognise that while they may be agonising over the cost, the reality is that people and families who need care appreciate that there’s a cost involved: but the current system is not fit for purpose. Too much is spent via the NHS and too little is devoted to social care by increasingly cash-strapped councils. The Government must deliver on its promises of ensuring millions no longer face the risk of a postcode lottery of care and of losing all their life savings to pay for care costs which taxpayers cover for others. Money for care has not been ring-fenced for care and therefore not being spent on the care that is needed by an increasingly aging population.

“Saga, now the nation's largest provider of home care, has 18,000 carers providing two million hours of care a month, and we have regular contact with millions of over-50s, many of whom are touched by the care issue. And the overriding opinion of virtually every one of them is disbelief that such a vital issue – described by the government itself as ‘urgent’ – can be taking so long to sort out.

“We call on the government to introduce meaningful reforms, encourage people to save for their future care needs and take away the biggest risks of catastrophic care costs, so people have proper incentives to save. We also need to see the Government ensuring that all local authorities are forced to plan properly for the care needs of their constituents - a ten-year plan to cope with the rising costs of caring for older people is an essential reform to ensure councils have to factor the needs of more older people properly into account.”

Ends

For further information:

Saga Press Office

01303 771529.

www.saga.co.uk

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

HOME CARE CRISIS “AS BIG AS A CITY” ”: MORE SHAMEFUL AND SHOCKING EVIDENCE

DR ROS ALTMANN

@SagaRosAltmann

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

November 23, 2011.

HOME CARE CRISIS “AS BIG AS A CITY” ”: MORE SHAMEFUL AND SHOCKING EVIDENCE SHOWS REAL IMPACT OF CARE CUTS.

RADICAL REFORM IS LONG OVERDUE

The government is failing to act to head off a home care crisis “as big as a city” despite constant and overwhelming evidence from an avalanche of reports.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission and Care Quality Commission have highlighted again the poor standards of social care suffered by many older people – primarily caused by huge, and growing, shortfalls in local authority care budgets.

“Of course, there is wonderful care out there, but as councils keep cutting care budgets, standards can only get worse: hardly a week goes by without another damning report into the treatment of the elderly and vulnerable in this country. But so far, nothing has actually been done to address the reality of the day-to-day indignities many older people endure,” said Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s organisation Saga.

“Today's report, from the Equality and Human Rights Commission, says that 250,000 older people – the equivalent of the population of a city the size of Derby or Southampton - are receiving poor or very poor standards of home care including verbal and physical abuse, near-cursory 15-minute ‘task-ticking’ visits– there should be a statutory minimum way higher than that - and little or no help in eating and drinking.

“But as the EHRC points out, the figure may actually be higher because many more may well be too frightened to complain. What’s more, that’s just home care: one element of a social care system which is becoming deluged as we live longer lives.

“The government knows about these issues – how can they not, as they are continually presented with evidence of a care system in crisis? Predictable pre-packaged Ministerial responses expressing outrage and pledging action are not enough.

“Let me ask this: when was the last time we saw any decisive action – as opposed to talk?

“Of course, we welcome the CQC’s proposed home care inspection plans, as well as any move which will help improve the quality and consistency of care – and consequently the quality of life – for our older generations. But the CQC has stopped inspecting the local authority commissioners themselves. If we do not tackle the root cause of the problem - inadequate resources for care - how can we expect decent care?

“We need to properly fund our care system and revere it as much as we do the NHS. We need a consistent regulatory and monitoring system that promotes and encourages best practice, not inconsistent and unprepared knee-jerk responses.

“The question needs to be asked just who monitors the local authority commissioners? They are putting pressure on care providers to offer the lowest priced possible care - and it should be obvious that 15 minute visits make it impossible to deliver adequate care. How do we get health and homecare to work in tandem, and get people back in their own home where they want to be and where care is most cost effective?

“It is vital that we drive the retention of some excellent people who do a tremendous job - the vast silent majority who never get a mention in dispatches. We need to promote care as a career and a profession, and highlight the requirement for best practice, and applaud it where we see it.”

Ends

For further information:

Saga Press Office
01303 771529.

www.saga.co.uk

Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800

UNLAWFUL LOCAL AUTHORITY CARE BUDGET CUTS: PREPARE FOR THE LEGAL CHALLENGE DELUGE, SAYS SAGA.

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA.

@SagaRosAltmann

QUOTES.

November 11, 2011.

UNLAWFUL LOCAL AUTHORITY CARE BUDGET CUTS: PREPARE FOR THE LEGAL CHALLENGE DELUGE, SAYS SAGA.

Commenting on this week’s court cases in which at least two local authorities have been told that cutting of freezing fees to cover the cost of social care for the elderly and disabled is unlawful, Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s group Saga, said:

“Until the Government properly recognises the need to fund social care properly, these challenges will keep coming and local authorities will remain under pressure. Consider this: A hospital bed costs around £2,000 a week. A week’s social care - whether in a care home or domiciliary - costs between £400 and £700 depending upon needs and location.

”We have to take a step back and consider the bigger picture: in the space of just a few days a number of local authorities have been told that cutting or freezing budgets to spend on the most vulnerable in our society is unlawful. This leaves all councils with a huge problem and will potentially leave local authority budgets in chaos.

“The local authorities have been forced into this position because of cutbacks and austerity measures - they are in a very difficult position; but the victims are the people who are least able to fend for themselves.

“This, now -bearing in mind we are aware of further impending legal challenges and court cases of this nature - surely sends a signal to government and policymakers that the social care funding issue needs to move swiftly to the top of the agenda.

“The cases and judgments this week are individual victories, but they are also precedents for other claims and challenges.

“That means there is now every danger that the social care and legal systems could well be swamped with costly and time-consuming claims and challenges. The key is unlocking and unblocking the social care system with proper investment and commitment, releasing NHS beds by taking the elderly and vulnerable out of hospitals and back into the community, and saving billions of pounds. The sooner we grasp this nettle with proper radical reform, the better.

“Social care must be valued more highly - since it can be just as life-threatening to withhold social care from those who need it, as it would be to withhold medical care.”

Ends

For further information:

Contact: Dr. Ros Altmann - 07545 504 513 or Saga Press Office 01303 771529.

www.saga.co.uk

CARE BILL SHORTFALL COULD DOUBLE TO £2 BILLION AS JUDGE RULES COUNCIL FREEZE ON CARE PAYMENTS TO ELDERLY IS UNLAWFUL.

SEFTON CARE ASSOCIATION

PRESS RELEASE

November 9, 2011.

CARE BILL SHORTFALL COULD DOUBLE TO £2 BILLION AS JUDGE RULES COUNCIL FREEZE ON CARE PAYMENTS TO ELDERLY IS UNLAWFUL.

Copies of judgment and solicitor’s summary available on request.

The potential shortfall in the budget for care of the elderly in England and Wales could well have instantly doubled to £2 billion after a High Court judge ruled that Sefton Council broke the law when it froze payments covering the cost of care for elderly people in care homes.

The landmark decision could affect 140 local authorities which froze or reduced care payments to thousands of care home residents, but it could mean care support justice for older people who have been forced to raid their savings or assets to cover the cost of good quality and dignified care.

His Honour Judge Raynor QC ruled in the High Court in Manchester on November 9, 2011, that Sefton Council - a typical middle-sized authority - should not have frozen payment levels to 1,600 elderly people in care in the borough, and that it did not pay due regard to the actual cost of covering care in making its unilateral decision.

The claimants against Sefton Council’s decision to freeze payments were Sefton Care Association, Melton Health Care Limited, Westcliffe Manor Nursing Home, Benridge Care Homes Limited and Craignair Care Home. The financially-constrained action brought backing by both independent and charity-based providers in the local community.

Elderly residents, many with dementia, and their families, have been forced to top up the growing difference between Sefton Council’s frozen payment contribution level and the actual cost of care. The last time Sefton increased fees was April 2009. That means they have been frozen at the April 2009 rates ever since.

The judicial review and judgement relates specifically to the current year freeze, April 2011 to March 2012. Sefton Council claims to have saved £1.5m by not increasing fees by the proposed 2%. The claimants will now seek to reclaim the lost portion of fees to meet the actual cost of care which could be significantly higher, and at the very least in line with inflation of 4.5%. That alone will cost the Sefton around £3.4m, and, with the next year's budget now in sight, the cost may not stop there - inflation is now over 5% so next year this will climb to £3.75m, meaning a total of £7.15m additional cost to Sefton.

The King’s Fund recently suggested care funding would have a £1 billion shortfall by 2014. But if each of the 140 local authorities affected receives claims for similar shortfalls – Sefton appearing to have an average-sized population of elderly in care - then this could mean around an additional £1 billion would need to be found.

Judge Raynor said that care homes in the Sefton area should have been allowed to substantiate their concerns over the two-year payment freeze, and that the local authority in question was under a duty to consult with residential care providers locally. Failure to do so made the payment freeze decision unlawful.

Dan Lingard, Chairman of Sefton Care Association, and owner of Birch Abbey Care Home in Southport, said: “This win gives us no great pleasure – but it does provide a tremendous sense of justice for the most vulnerable of people. It is an action which should not have had to be taken out in the first place, but clearly has massive implications for care. It may well be the tipping point which re-prioritises the way care is funded and provided in this country.

“We may well be living and operating in a very tough economic environment, but the Judge has effectively ruled that the financial environment is not a good enough reason for a council to impose a freeze on payments to massively vulnerable people.

“The courts have ruled that the council’s decision to freeze payments is unlawful, and we await an urgent and positive response from Sefton Council confirming that they will now re-make this decision with an increase in funding.

“There are hundreds of vulnerable people affected and the council needs to act swiftly.

“A key issue, given the state of care funding in the UK, is that many people and their families may have had to sell assets to pay for the inflation-affected widening gap between what the local authority paid and what the cost of care actually is.

“We’re now looking for Sefton Council to respond with some sort of offer in terms of increased fees for 2011/12. We also expect Sefton Council to agree to implement the findings of an independent assessment of the actual cost of care in Sefton. The Sefton Care Association is prepared to raise funds to contribute towards this. But, crucially, we want to see a new and meaningful consultation process replacing the current now discredited approach.”

Dan Lingard is chairman of Sefton Care Association, Chief Executive of Melton Health Care Limited - which operates Birch Abbey Care Home in Southport - and a nationally-noted dementia care innovator. He founded the iPersonally approach to dementia care, and is a regular speaker on dementia care innovation and technology development.

Further quotes from Dan Lingard:

“Critical budget savings at the NHS are being put at risk by a rising tide of elderly needing admission to hospital due to a withdrawal of social care services.

“The elderly and their families are falling victim to a vicious circle of neglect as the NHS and local authorities struggle to provide anything but emergency care for the most vulnerable.

“Inflation is killing the elderly and the vulnerable as services are being cut to providing for only the most needy as Local Authorities up and own the country fight to resolve budget cuts made worse by high inflation.

“Many care home owners up and down the country are hanging on by a thread as the third year of freezes and cuts in fees start to take their toll. In financial terms, this ruling could dwarf the Southern Cross bankruptcy; there is real concern local authorities in their dominant, near-monopoly buying position may have pushed charity as well as commercial operators too far for too long.”

Ends

For further information:

Iain Macauley

07788 978800

im@pressrelations.co.uk

@Press_Relations

CII REPORT: PENSION “TREASURE TROVES” ARE NOWHERE NEAR BIG ENOUGH FOR LATER LIFE CARE, SAYS SAGA.

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

September 14, 2011.

CII REPORT: PENSION “TREASURE TROVES” ARE NOWHERE NEAR BIG ENOUGH FOR LATER LIFE CARE, SAYS SAGA.

The glammed-up treasure trove of private pension pots could turn to dust for the majority of the population requiring care in later life.

Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s group Saga, says that the findings of a report by the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII), entitled “Who cares?”, highlights that despite the recent Dilnot Commission, the public remains unaware of the real cost of long-term care and the need to make personal provision to meet costs.

“Around 80% of people have no idea of how much they will have to pay for care, and around half think long-term care is free at the point of use - but today’s average pension pot will fall well short of funding long-term care costs for the one in four of us who will need it,” said Dr Altmann, who has written a chapter of the report.

“According to the Dilnot Commission on Funding of Care and Support, the current average long-term care bill is £26,000 a year, the average length of stay in a care home is two years, but the current average pension income is often only £10,000 a year, leaving a huge annual deficit.

“The key is developing an awareness and national culture of saving for later life. While private pensions may have been sold as later-life treasure troves alongside images of Mediterranean villas or sumptuous retirement apartments, the fact is that we’re in the midst of a pensions crisis which will provide many people with a far more down-to-earth later life – but the impending care crisis will dwarf it by comparison.

“There is not enough money being put aside privately or publicly, and the vast majority of the population is hoping they won’t need care, when statistically at least one in four people will need it.

“The Dilnot report highlights how failure to adjust social care policy over time has left care under-funded across the board – at national, local and individual level. The welfare state was designed in the 1940s, when the idea of millions of people living to advanced old age was unheard of. Policy has failed to move with the times and is not fit for the 21st century.

“Past Governments have failed to help people prepare for care, even though at least one in four of us will require expensive care in later life. The current system of long-term care funding is haphazard, inefficient and unsustainable.

“Government spends over £100bn on benefits, over £50bn on the health service and just £8bn on care, leaving millions of vulnerable older people at risk. The issue is that people are now living so much longer than before, which is actually great news, but our support systems are being overwhelmed.

“This means most people’s whole life savings are at risk, but many do not realise this. Of course, unlike pensions, not everyone will need care, so insurance against future care costs is one obvious potential solution. However, potential care costs that need to be insured against are unlimited, so it is impossible to find affordable insurance to give full peace of mind, and it is difficult to devise policies that will provide real peace of mind.

“There are potential solutions that could be introduced, though: For example, Care ISAs, allocating an annual pension-style allowance to provide for care, incentivising employer care plans with proper tax relief, adapting annuity rules to allow pension funds to be used to buy ‘Care Pension Annuities’, with a lower starting income but which would then provide much larger sums in later life if care is needed.

“Equity Release is inevitable, since most people needing care will probably have to access some of the value of their property; Another potential savings product that would be facilitated by a cap on private care costs would be ‘Family Care Plans’. Four family members could club resources together and save in a joint-account to ensure, say, that one of them will have their care needs covered up to the cap.”

Ends
Further information:
Dr. Ros Altmann
Director-General, Saga
ros.altmann@saga.co.uk
www.saga.co.uk
07545 504513
Twitter @SagaRosAltmann
Saga Press Office
01303 771529.

Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800

EHRC HOME CARE STANDARDS AND DIGNITY REPORT: MORE EMBARRASSMENT FOR GOVERNMENT CARE PROVISION.

DR ROS ALTMANN
DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA
PRESS RELEASE

June 16, 2011.

EHRC HOME CARE STANDARDS AND DIGNITY REPORT: MORE EMBARRASSMENT FOR GOVERNMENT CARE PROVISION.

Commenting on the findings of the inquiry by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of Saga, the over-50s organisation, said:

“The EHRC report draws attention, once again, to the consequences of a lack of adequate funding for care in the UK. We have not taken care seriously enough in this country and it has not received the attention - or the money - that has been devoted to the NHS, even though a lack of adequate care can be just as harmful to people's lives as a lack of adequate health services.

“The view of millions of Saga customers - and of experts in the field - is that home care is a better and more cost-effective route to providing support and dignity to the elderly and most vulnerable than relying on a hospital stay, and much preferred to care homes.

“The vast majority of older people receive excellent care and value highly the care worker who cares for them. But money is time - and cuts mean visit duration and frequency are coming under pressure. If local authority budgets for care continue to be squeezed, the outcomes for older people will also be damaged.

“Cutting funding for care is a false economy: good, fully-funded, home care can prevent people needing urgent care in hospital or staying in hospital longer than necessary and would save huge amounts for the NHS.

“While the Health and Social Care Bill focuses mostly on the Health Service, we believe it is important to increase emphasis on the Social Care side of the debate.

“There is simply not enough money being set aside for care - event the £2billion that the Government said it would allocate to care has not been ring-fenced, so it may be diverted to other uses. There is a great variation across the UK in who qualifies for care, what level of care they qualify for – the extent and type of visit - and how much funding the local authority provides.

“It is vital that high standards - including training – are maintained. But the tremendous work carried out by carers and family carers needs to be recognised. They are under incredible time and emotional pressure – particularly those working to enforced local authority budgets and hence time allocations. Unless we allocate more resource, we fear further negative headlines - they could be avoided by a more joined-up approach to health and social care for vulnerable older people in our ageing society.”

Ends

Further information:
Dr. Ros Altmann
Director-General, Saga
ros.altmann@saga.co.uk
www.saga.co.uk
07545 504513
Twitter @SagaRosAltmann

Ros Altmann
Director General
Saga Group Ltd
Mobile: 07545 504 513
Web: www.saga.co.uk

SOUTHERN CROSS TALKS: THEY’RE OVERLOOKING THE KEY ISSUE – WELLBEING AND CERTAINTY FOR CARE HOME RESIDENTS.

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

June 15, 2011.

SOUTHERN CROSS TALKS: THEY’RE OVERLOOKING THE KEY ISSUE – WELLBEING AND CERTAINTY FOR CARE HOME RESIDENTS.

Commenting on the Southern Cross care homes crisis, Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of Saga, the over-50s organisation, said:

“There are lots of discussions today about Southern Cross, but the vast majority of talk is about money-related issues – but they’re missing the most important point: the primary issues are the wellbeing of the residents, their families - and workers, who are also crucial to the wellbeing process.

“Giving false reassurances to families and key workers is unacceptable; nobody in the process or operation – from end to end - has any clarity or certainty. It is an utterly unsustainable position.

"These are people, not boxes in a warehouse; they and their families are having more pressure and concern heaped upon them at a time when the care environment as a whole is in alarming disarray.

"We’ve heard about rents and tax bills, but there's simply no clarity, certainty or reassurances on the issue of just how safe and secure Southern Cross care home residents are, consequently causing deep concern amongst their families.

"But another key issue that seems not to have been addressed is the point that staff too are facing uncertainty - what happens if Southern Cross staff decide enough is enough, and start to look for work elsewhere? We should all be concerned about what hardships might arise for the incredibly vulnerable residents of Southern Cross homes if staff do start to move on.”

Ends

Further information:

Dr. Ros Altmann
Director-General, Saga
ros.altmann@saga.co.uk
www.saga.co.uk

07545 504513
Twitter @SagaRosAltmann 

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

Twitter @Press_Relations

NHS REFORMS: DOCTORS “INNOCENTLY IGNORANT” OF SOCIAL CARE SYSTEM.

DR ROS ALTMANN
DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

SAGA RESPITE FOR CARERS TRUST
PRESS RELEASE

June 13, 2011

DOCTORS “INNOCENTLY IGNORANT” OF SOCIAL CARE SYSTEM.

NHS doctors and nurses are largely in the dark about how to get post-treatment elderly patients out of hospital beds and into social care, meaning a potentially overwhelming tidal wave of demand for care once medical professionals get to grips with the system.

The lack of clarity amongst doctors over how the UK social care system operates means that thousands of hospital beds are blocked by elderly people who would be better off being cared for at home or in residential care.

“The potential impact of this issue is not just that innocent ignorance exists, but what will happen when medical professionals are educated, and health and social care are finally integrated,” said Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s lifestyle organisation Saga, which supports the Saga Respite for Carers Trust.

“It is important that they become better equipped to allow patients to leave hospital with suitable care cover, but Saga is concerned that there is a consequent risk of our care system being overwhelmed.

“In fact, there will come a tipping point when medical professionals understand the massively complex UK social care system, how to get elderly post-treatment people into it, and start to move older infirm people out of hospital beds and into care at a much faster rate.

“It is an element of NHS reform which has been overlooked: medical professionals need to be educated in how the social care system works – given the confusing array of approaches taken by different authorities - but, once they do, then elderly people will flow into the social care system faster and in greater volumes, which risks swamping home carers and residential care – but the upside is this will create a faster flow of NHS acute and elective patients into hospitals because of the increased availability of beds.

“The hospital bed log jam may be unwelcome, but it is convenient to the current capacity of the system. However, once the log jam is cleared, then demands upon different elements of the social care and healthcare systems further downstream will go beyond capacity.

“This is an issue which urgently needs to be factored in to the government’s current re-thinking on NHS reforms as realisation and significance dawns as to just how much work needs to be done on integration of health and social care.

“So frustrated are we at the lack of information about care that we have produced a free public information guide – astonishingly the only single-source guide in the UK – for both families and, indeed, medical professionals, who are trying to get to grips with the care system.”

‘The Saga Guide to Care’ is free and available from 0800 015 2084 or online at www.saga.co.uk/ltc

Ends

Further information:

Dr. Ros Altmann
Director-General, Saga
ros.altmann@saga.co.uk
07545 504513
Twitter @SagaRosAltmann

Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800
Twitter @Press_Relations

DILNOT CONFIRMS AT CARE CRISIS SEMINAR: THERE MUST BE A CAP ON PERSONAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO CARE COSTS.

DR ROS ALTMANN
DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA
PRESS RELEASE

June 7, 2011

DILNOT CONFIRMS AT CARE CRISIS SEMINAR: THERE MUST BE A CAP ON PERSONAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO CARE COSTS.

The problem of paying for long-term care for the elderly must involve them being willing to use part of the value of their homes.

This was one conclusion reached today (June 7) at the Saga Care Crisis Seminar with Andrew Dilnot, who is heading the independent commission into the funding of care.

Saga Director-General Ros Altmann, who was chairing the meeting, asked if any of the group, who are all leaders in the care industry, believed that home-owning pensioners should not have to pay for care from the value of their houses – and not one disagreed.

But Mr Dilnot, whose report is due out in July, made it clear that he felt there should be a cap on contributions so everyone still had something left over to pass on to their children.

He said it was clear that all three main political parties accepted that it was crucial for there to be a new system of paying for care, the cost of which is set to soar as people live longer.

“What we have at the moment is a nightmare,” he said. “There must be more resources – both public and private.”

There had to be an acceptance that people would have to meet some of the costs themselves but governments also had to accept that the state must be ready to protect people from “catastrophic losses”.

Ros Altmann added: “In a civilised society, the state will have to ultimately pick up the tab.”

She said that the private sector needed to get involved, too, as it was in the provision of pensions.

Among other issues discussed at the seminar were how more older people might be kept in their own homes and how health service money could be better used if it was spent on preventing health problems which resulted in the need for care.

One of the participants, Lord German, called on the provision of care to become a fundamental right. He said a post-code lottery existed at the moment because much of care is funded through local authorities and so how much anyone got depended on the policy of their council.

He added: “We need a system that is national. If it’s a universal system, it will be a universal right. And it should be one of the fundamental rights to receive care.”

Ends

Further information:

Dr. Ros Altmann
Director-General, Saga
ros.altmann@saga.co.uk
07545 504513
Twitter @SagaRosAltmann

Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800
Twitter @Press_Relations

THE MONSTER OVER THE HILL – THE CARE CRISIS LOOMS. DILNOT TO LEAD JUNE 7 DEBATE.

DR ROS ALTMANN
DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA
PRESS RELEASE

June 6, 2011

THE MONSTER OVER THE HILL – THE CARE CRISIS LOOMS.

DILNOT TO LEAD SAGA'S SEMINAR IN SEARCH FOR SOLUTIONS.

Some of the most informed, visionary and influential people in social care will gather in London on Tuesday, June 7, 2011, in a bid to tackle the looming UK care crisis - the monster over the hill.

Andrew Dilnot, chairman of the Government’s Commission into Care Funding, will lead the debate at the Saga Care Crisis Seminar, which will be chaired by Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s organisation Saga, and attended by a selection of the most senior care sector influencers.

“History is littered with ‘told-you-so’s’ – those of us who have a frontline appreciation of care issues are screaming that there’s a monster over the hill, but the policymakers either don’t see it, or are so dumbstruck by the magnitude of the threat that they’re frozen to the spot, and unable to respond or react,” said Dr Altmann.

“The care issue is invisible to many, but monstrous to those with direct care sector contact. The combined expertise and brainpower around that table on Tuesday knows that a care catastrophe is fast – and relentlessly – approaching.

“It is essential that we move on with reform of care funding – quickly and decisively - before we are overwhelmed. If we believed the pensions crisis was crippling, the care crisis has the potential to be far, far worse.  If someone does not have enough pension, they may be able to wait a bit.  But once someone needs critical care, they cannot wait at all.

“Very few people have earmarked any money for care needs. They just hope someone will look after them if the need arises. At least with pensions most people have done some saving, but, when it comes to care, there is no private provision - people just have to find the money at the time, and this can mean losing all their assets.

“The seminar will generate some definitive and do-able solutions, because, frankly, in the past, policymakers have come up with very little, have disguised petty political differences as insurmountable operational and organisational issues, and simply failed to make progress. Time is now running out in more ways than one.

“The crisis is creeping up on us. We must recognise the potential for the issue to overwhelm the system before it’s too late.”

Ends

Further information:

Dr. Ros Altmann
Director-General, Saga
ros.altmann@saga.co.uk
07545 504513
Twitter @SagaRosAltmann

Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800
Twitter @Press_Relations

SAGA REPORT SHOWS CARE FUNDING CRISIS IS WORSE THAN THOUGHT – WE’RE THE POOR OLD MAN OF EUROPE AGAIN.

DR ROS ALTMANN
DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA
PRESS RELEASE

June 6, 2011

SAGA REPORT SHOWS CARE FUNDING CRISIS IS WORSE THAN THOUGHT – WE’RE THE POOR OLD MAN OF EUROPE AGAIN.

Baby boomers living in comfort today could fall into a precipice of unexpectedly undignified later life if the falling levels of spending on social care and the rising spiral of demand continue to diverge at the current rate. The problem is set to explode if no action is taken.

That’s the finding of a report commissioned by over-50s organisation Saga, which highlights that the shortfall in spending on care could be much worse than previously thought - and that the UK is languishing near the bottom of the European care spend league.

The report, “Take Care – the Future Funding of Social Care” says that no degree of number crunching based on current levels of spend will make ends meet in the sector, meaning potentially catastrophic consequences for millions of Britons in later life.

“We often look down on other countries, but when it comes to care for the elderly, we should look up to many of them,” said Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of Saga.

Compiled by academics and care sector experts at 2020 Health, the report shows that an estimated 275,000 people with moderate care needs are receiving no financial support as local authorities are desperately reducing their spending to make ends meet, and that there are huge under-spends on technology compared to European neighbours.

“Decent care cannot be provided on the cheap, but not enough money has been allocated. Many more older people, not enough money - and the situation is worsening relentlessly: by 2030 there will be 50% more older people, with associated fast-growing demands on the public purse. Currently, people of working age fund a large proportion of care provision through taxes, and the ratio of taxpayers to older people will fall by a third; so where will the money come from?” said Dr Altmann.

“The fact that people live longer has been with us for a long time, but successive Governments have failed to prepare properly to address the inevitable consequences. Warnings of a pensions crisis were ignored but are finally being taken seriously with urgent reform; however no such sense of urgency has been shown when it comes to care.

“If we think the pensions crisis is a huge problem, care could be a major catastrophe as more older people are left to languish with inadequate resources to look after their needs.

“The 'Take Care' report highlights the enormous challenges we face.  In particular, it warns that current policy is incoherent. On the one hand, Government says it wants to encourage people to stay independent and remain in their own homes for as long as possible, which is what older people themselves also want, but on the other hand, by financing only those with greatest need, and reducing funding for those with moderate needs, people are denied the help they require to be able to live at home and it is inevitable that more people will end up in critical need.

“The report also highlights that the UK can once again be labelled the poor old man of Europe. It cites figures from the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) showing that the UK spends far less on social care for older people than many other European nations – we’re 17^th out of 20. Poland, Germany and Sweden spend 50% more than us, while France and Italy spend twice as much. We should be ashamed of the lack of spending on care, which is leading to an extremely undignified way of life for people growing old in the UK.

“The UK is also behind other countries in the use of telehealth and telecare services - but it is well known that monitoring people more effectively and treating them in their own home can save time and money for health and care services, and is better for them as well.

“The report assesses the various care funding options, including a partnership between paying for yourself and getting funding from the public purse, as well as insurance and savings options – whether voluntary or compulsory – or tax funded. The only certainty is that no single approach is going to suit everybody.

“We need new thinking, and there is no time to dither. More older people, means more demand for social care, but less funding and local authority cutbacks leave vulnerable voiceless victims at risk. It’s a time bomb. We must defuse it.”

Ends

Further information:
Dr. Ros Altmann
Director-General, Saga
ros.altmann@saga.co.uk
07545 504513
Twitter @SagaRosAltmann

Iain Macauley
im@pressrelations.co.uk
07788 978800
Twitter @Press_Relations

OECD CARE REPORT: A LOT GOING ON, BUT NOTHING ACTUALLY HAPPENING

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

SAGA SOUNDBITE

May 23, 2011.

SAGA RESPONSE TO OECD CARE REPORT: A LOT GOING ON, BUT NOTHING ACTUALLY HAPPENING.

Commenting on the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) report that says Britain faces one of the biggest elderly care bills in the industrialised world, the Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s lifestyle group Saga, said:

“There are some big political and financial ‘told-you-so’s’ out there, but nobody wants care to be one of them.

“Saga deals with a sector of the population, the over-50s, which numbers 21 million people – many of whom are touched by the issue of later-life care, whether needing it or providing it. We work continuously with carers and the families of those who need care, and we have our finger firmly on the financial pulse of the country as it affects the elderly.

“We’ve been saying for years that there’s simply no money for care in later life. Families aren’t or can’t save for it, local authorities are slashing budgets for it, and so far as the government is concerned there seems to be an awful lot going on but nothing actually happening.

“Positive findings or recommendations from the Dilnot Commission into care funding cannot come soon enough.”

Ends

Further information:

Dr. Ros Altmann

Director-General, Saga

ros.altmann@saga.co.uk

07545 504513

Twitter @SagaRosAltmann

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

Twitter @Press_Relations

SAGA: PHASE OUT “PENSION” AND ENCOURAGE SAVERS TO SAVE LIKE NEVER BEFORE.

DR ROS ALTMANN

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, SAGA

PRESS RELEASE

May 12, 2011.

SAGA: PHASE OUT “PENSION” AND ENCOURAGE SAVERS TO SAVE LIKE NEVER BEFORE.

The introduction of a “savers National Lottery” and phasing out the word “pension” from commercial products could re-invigorate long-term savings trends and help head off what seems otherwise to be an almost-certain pensions and care crisis.

Economist Dr Ros Altmann, Director-General of over-50s lifestyle organisation Saga, who is also a former government pensions adviser, says the financial services sector should phase the word “pension” out of all current and future commercial later-life savings products, and start to seriously address decades of mistrust in the whole pensions concept.

“People are wary of saving just at the time when we need savers to save like never before. Long-term saving must be made attractive, possibly even exciting, and certainly be given greater clarity and simplicity. It’s time for savers to have their cake - and eat it,” said Dr Altmann.

“It’s simple. There is not enough money to cover the basic lifestyle aspirations of a population with ever-increasing life expectancy. There is nothing like enough money to cover the cost of care that one-in-three women and one-in-five men will need, and the word ‘pension’ has become so negative that people simply don’t believe there’s any great benefit to be had by paying into one.

“The National Lottery – which probably has more perceived integrity than the personal pension system - yields occasional prize benefits to the lucky few, but with no savings element. Premium Bonds have a savings element but do not accrue interest, so actually lose value.

“But combining the two ideas – winning prizes and accruing interest, having your cake and eating it – is not inconceivable. The more somebody saves, the more likely they are to win, say, a monthly £1 million prize – an evolution of Premium Bonds. The key is legislating such that the investment is ring-fenced and secured in the same way as payments into current personal pension funds, with similarly defined periods before funds could be accessed.”

Ends

Further information:

Iain Macauley

im@pressrelations.co.uk

07788 978800

www.saga.co.uk