Health Secretary unveils adult care funding commission, stressing impact on local government

The government has launched a commission on the funding of adult social care and support, acknowledging that the current system is unsustainable and urgent reform is needed.

The commission – which will be chaired by Andrew Dilnot, an economist and former director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies – has been asked to “examine and provide deliverable recommendations on:

• How best to meet the costs of care and support as a partnership between individuals and the state
• How people could choose to protect their assets, especially their homes, against the cost of care
• How, both now and in the future, public funding for the care and support system can be best used to meet care and support needs, and
• How its preferred option can be delivered, including an indication of the timescale for implementation, and its impact on local government (and the local government finance system), the NHS, and – if appropriate – financial regulation.”

The Health Secretary said the commission should examine a range of funding ideas, including voluntary insurance and partnership schemes. Funding models must be assessed on criteria including choice, fairness, value for money and sustainability, Andrew Lansley added.

He said that the recommended system must be consistent with the government’s deficit reduction plan, and be sustainable for the public finances in the long term. Any proposals will also have to be compatible with the government’s vision for care and support – “supporting personalisation, prevention and partnership and offering protection for people” – and take into account how appropriate housing and related services can better support people with disabilities and in later life.

He has asked Dilnot – who will be supported by two other commissioners, Lord Norman Warner and Dame Jo Williams – to report back by July 2011.

The government will then publish a White Paper, drawing together the commission’s conclusions with the work being done by the Law Commission, which is looking at how to create a single modern statute for social care.

The Health Secretary insisted that urgent reform was needed. Lansley said: “By 2026, the number of 85 year olds is projected to double. In the next 20 years we estimate that 1.7m more people will have a potential care need than today. We know that one in five 65 year olds today will need care costing more than £50,000, which could force many to sell family homes.

“The answer is clear – we must develop a funding system for adult care and support that offers choice, is fair, provides value for money and is sustainable for the public finances in the long term. I want to build momentum on this reform and expect to see legislation in front of Parliament next year.”

Care Services Minister Paul Burstow added: “The current system is unsustainable – it cannot go on as it is. The country needs a new settlement for social care.

“For too long social care reform has been a talking shop. Trade offs will have to be made but we are determined to build a funding system that is fair, affordable and sustainable.”

Dame Jo Williams has meanwhile emerged as the government’s candidate for the post of chair of the Care Quality Commission.

Lansley has asked the health select committee to hold a public pre-appointment scrutiny hearing and report on Williams’ suitability for the post. Williams is currently interim chair of the CQC, having succeeded Baroness Young, who resigned from the post in January this year.