Age Concern attacks 'care lottery' for elderly

Charity attacks 'care lottery' for elderly - Telegraph

Extract:

"Elderly people in some parts of Britain are up to 160 times more likely to have their bills for long-term NHS care paid for by the health service than others.

The unjustifiable postcode lottery was a public scandal and "beggared belief", said Age Concern, which obtained the information from the Department of Health.

The issue of who pays for "continuing care" is highly contentious as thousands of elderly people have to use their savings or even sell their homes to pay bills, while others get their care for free.

It is estimated that more than 70,000 elderly people have been forced to sell their homes.
Continuing care is defined as where the NHS is responsible for, and fully funds, health care outside hospital. It mostly affects very ill, older people in nursing homes, but the NHS can also fund care in a person's own home.

Age Concern's analysis of continuing care figures shows that in March, Derby City Primary Care Trust was giving just seven people continuing care, a figure which represents 0.26 people per 10,000.

Age Concern contrasted the figures with Harrow, which was giving 826 people continuing care, at a rate of 41.75 per 10,000 people, 160 times higher than Derby."