Policy Updates 7th March 2022
The following policy updates have been curated from the week commencing 7th March 2022.
New Policy
Joint Statement on delivering the 100 Days Mission
The DHSC has released a policy paper entitled 100 days Mission. It commits to taking forward specific steps to be prepared for any future pandemic. It aims to have safe and effective vaccines, therapeutics and diagnostics within 100 days of an epidemic or pandemic threat being identified.
Found at: GOV.UK
Operational guidance to implement a lifetime cap on care costs
The main purpose of this consultation is to seek views on the statutory guidance which sets out how a cap on care costs would operate in practice, as well as to inform how government can support local authorities in their preparations for its implementation from October 2023.
The documents outline:
Implementing the cap on care costs: draft operational guidance
Cap on care costs (including Daily Living Costs (DLCs, what does/n't count towards the cap and preparations for reaching the cap)
Independent personal budgets
Care Accounts
Operational guidance to implement a lifetime cap on care costs
Supporting local preparation: draft guidance
Care England will be looking through these documents in detail and extracting the key messages and any questions/concerns we may have. If members have any comments, please email lholmes@careengland.org.uk
Found at: GOV.UK
New Deterioration Tool 2 Survey for Care Homes
Care Home providers are asked to complete the new Deterioration Tool Survey once during March. Responses will help provide greater understanding of what happens when residents experience an episode of acute physical deterioration. They will also identify where more help is needed and the type of free support required. The Survey is located on the Manage Your Care Homes page. Help and further information on the Survey questions and background can be found within the Resource Centre's Survey folder.
Found at: Capacity Tracker
Updated Policy
Supported living services during coronavirus (COVID-19)
Guidance for providers of supported living settings.
4 March 2022
Added easy read version of the guidance.
Found at: GOV.UK
Organisation testing registration: record of users
The UKHSA has issued an updated spreadsheet for recording tests which includes a column for the Royal Mail barcode.
Found at: GOV.UK
COVID-19 Spring Booster Resources
The UKHSA has published a guide for those aged over 75 and older residents in care homes. Booking slots for those eligible will be made available soon.
Found at: GOV.UK
NCF Briefing
Consultation on Operational Guidance to Implement a Lifetime Cap on Care Costs
We hoped to get a full briefing to you today on this but it is proving a rather complicated set of documents, so we will have something fuller later this week. I've given a brief overview instead. The government has published a draft version of its operational guidance for local authorities to implement the lifetime cap on care costs in order to consult on it. Three documents have been published:
The consultation can be accessed here or you can respond via chargingreformconsultation@dhsc.gov.uk. The consultation closes on 1 April 2022. The consultation and operational guidance is very much aimed at Local Authorities.
The Cap
A cap on eligible care costs will be set at £86,000 and come into force from October 2023. This will only apply to those assessed as being eligible for care and support under the Care Act 2014. Eligible care costs refer only to personal care and support component of any care and support package, not daily living costs (more below on this).
The upper care limit will rise to £100,000 (from £23,250) and the lower capital limit will increase to £20,000 from £14,250. This means anyone with chargeable assets below £100,000 will be asked to contribute £1 per week for every £250 in assets which fall between the lower and upper limits.
Daily Living Costs
This is an area we are seeking urgent clarity on as it is confusing. Daily Living Costs (DLCs) are defined as things such as rent, food and utility bills and apply to residential care settings. It is an attempt to split out those costs from care costs and make a level playing field with people in their own homes who would be paying those costs anyway. DLCs as such do not count in the metering towards the care cap. The guidance talks about these being set at a 'national, notional' amount of £200 per week for these metering purposes. We do not think this means that providers are only able to charge £200 for these DLCs, but the guidance uses very confusing language and are seeking urgent clarity on what exactly is intended. We believe the £200 figure is simply for the purposes of the LA calculating how much an individual pays towards the cap on care costs. This means that if an individual reaches the cap, they will still have to pay DLCs. We will circulate more information when we have clarity.
How people progress towards the cap
Everyone with eligible needs will be given a statement that sets out the costs that will count towards the cap, either in:
A form of a personal budget where a person’s needs are met by the LA (already exist, and will not be changed by the introduction of the cap). It is the amount the person is charged, excluding the amount paid by the LA. Daily living costs and top-up payments are also excluded from this. Note that a self-funder can request for the LA to arrange their care and would be given a personal budget in this scenario.
An independent personal budget (IPB), where a person fully funds and arranges their care themselves. This will be the record that sets out what the cost would be to the LA of meeting the person’s eligible needs. It is this that counts towards the care cap - the amount that the LA would have had to pay to provide the care the self-funder has arranged.
You will note that that any LA contribution does not count towards the cap. Care and support costs that count towards the cap are the costs of any provision that helps meet eligible needs as defined under the Act. The LA will assess the person’s care and support needs, and consider how they will be met. This means in line with the intention of personalisation in the Care Act, LAs must consider all the care and support needs a person has, establish the impact of those on their daily needs, and decide how best to meet them.
What does not count towards the cap
If a preventative service does not meet current eligible needs, it will not count towards the cap.
Care and support needs met through other legislation do not count towards the cap.
After the cap is reached, people will still remain responsible for meeting their daily living costs (DLCs), such as rent, food and utility bills. DLCs will be set at a national, notional amount of £200 per week in Financial Year 2021 to 2022 prices. If people are not able to meet daily costs from their income, they would need to make up the difference from their assets, including after they reached the cap.
DLCs need to be deducted from the cost of the person’s care package to meet their eligible needs (as set out in their personal budget or independent personal budgets). DLCs are not included in the amount that meters towards the cap and people will continue to be charged for them once they reach the cap.
Top-Ups. People receiving care, or a third party (such as a relative), can make additional payments for a preferred choice of care arrangement (e.g. premium rooms).Top-up payments will not count towards the cap and will still be payable by the person once the cap has been reached.
Care accounts
Through care accounts, local authorities will be responsible for keeping track of an individual’s progress towards the cap. They will need to provide regular care account statements to keep people informed of their own progress. Government is proposing the statements are digital by default and go out on a 6-monthly basis.
To reflect the proposed amendment for people to meter by their financial contribution, Gov intend to set out in the regulations that a care account statement must set out both a person’s current rate of progress towards the cap as well as the total cost of meeting the person’s eligible needs, that is, including any local authority contribution.
A fuller briefing will follow later this week, alongside an invite to a workshop to discuss our response to the consultation.
Wider Stakeholder News
Made with Care Campaign
The Made with Care campaign has now been running for four months, raising awareness of roles in adult social care across England. The campaign has created a suite of videos in partnership with Walnut Care at Home, and are encouraging the wide sharing of these via social media channels to help make employers aware of the benefits of taking part in the campaign. The different versions of the videos can be found here:
Employer case study video – Taking Part is Easy (Landscape) on Vimeo
Employer case study video – Taking Part is Easy (Square) on Vimeo
Employer case study video - full length (Landscape) on Vimeo
Employer case study video - full length (Square) on Vimeo
Employer case study video - Positive Impact (Square) on Vimeo
Employer case study video - Positive Impact (Landscape) on Vimeo
Employer case study video - Encouraging others to take part (Lscape) on Vimeo
Employer case study video - Encouraging others to take part (Square) on Vimeo
Recruiting people from outside the UK
Skills for Care are holding an online session on recruiting workers from outside the UK. It will be held on Friday 11th March from 10am to 12pm. Employers will describe their experiences of recruitment and of the pastoral support that is needed for new employees. You can book a place using the link below.
Found at: Skills for Care
International Recruitment Webinars
This includes a video of the HO presentation on the immigration rules and how to become a sponsor, the DHSC presentation on ethical recruitment, and presentations from ASC employers. It also includes the slide packs, FAQs, a guide by Fragomen (solicitors) and links to other gov.uk resources.
Found at: Skills for Care
Reaction to the withdrawal of VCOD
The National Care Forum has released a statement detailing its reaction to the withdrawal of the VCOD regulations. Under the heading ‘Wrong policy, wrong time’, it discusses the impact of the original policy and its withdrawal in terms of both finance and morale in the sector.
Found at: National Care Forum
National Papers
Lords defeat Boris Johnson over care cap that hits poorest with 'catastrophe'
Boris Johnson now faces another Tory MPs' revolt after peers voted 198-158 for an amendment to the Health and Care Bill, ensuring sums that councils pay towards care count towards a £86,000 cap.
Mirror
Trade Papers
Social Care Day of Remembrance and Reflection: How to get involved
Social Care Day of Remembrance and Reflection is set to take place on March 17. The day has been organised by Skills for Care with 20 other partners and supported by the Department of Health and Social Care. Here, Skills for Care CEO Oonagh Smyth shares why it was vital to plan this day to mark the contribution of people working in social care.
Home Care Insight
Coalition calls for legal right to health and social care visits
A coalition of organisations has called for the legal right for people to maintain contact with their family in health and care settings. The joint call for a new right, which is supported by over 30 organisations, including Mind, Mencap, Healthwatch England and Disability Rights UK, was sent to Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Sajid Javid, ahead of an event in Westminster on 9 March where people who have been affected by separation during the pandemic will discuss their experiences.
Care Home Professional