Paying for care

clarebear1_2

ORIGINALLY POSTED IN DISABILITY AND DOSH ADVISED TO POST HERE FOR A BETTER RESPONSE.

I'm seeking advice about paying for care homes. My mother has dementia, she's 57 and now lives in a care home to which the local council pay the majority and I pay the top-up.

Prior to going into residential care she was in receipt of DLA and income support. When she went into care in feb 2010 I informed both agencies who told me they could not discuss her benefits without Power of Attorney. I applied for this, and in the meantime my mums benefits were still being paid into her account. This was her only income. She instructed me to pay all her previous debts (household bills plus catalogue debts that she had got into difficulty with over the previous months). She also wanted me to hire removals for her furniture of her old home. Anyway, the income she had prior to obtaining power attorney has been spent, on her request, for things that she wanted closure on. It also provided her living expenses for the last few months - personal items/clothings etc.

Once power of attorney was received in May 2010 I then contacted the benefits agencies and they have suspended her benefits until the DWP appointee forms are completed/processed along with a copy of the power of attorney (which have all been sent). New amounts can then be calculated based on her change of circumstances.

I have now received a bill from the local authority with care home charges from when my mom first went into care. Although this bill is not for the full cost of her care, it is a subsidy based on her original income of benefits, it is still a large sum (£84 pw). I have sought advice from the citizens advice bureau who tell me I am only liable for charges from when the power of attorney was passed, can someone please confirm this? Also, as I understood the local authority to be paying for her care I have not saved receipts for the monies spent on my mums request, as I didnt expect to need them. Can you please advise me, as I am immensely stressed over this large bill of over £1000 as I am a student with 4 children, struggling to meet the top up, let alone the amount wanted by the council.

Thank you in advance of any advice you may be able to offer.

Savvy_Sue

Welcome to the boards! And I am sorry to hear about your mum.

I hope those who are experts in this will be along soon, but in the meantime do take a look a threads about CHC funding, it's a good place to start ...

monkeyspanner

Sorry to hear about your Mum.
I am uncertain as to why the CAB would say you are only liable for your Mum's contributions since becoming a POA. Presumeably it is beacause you personally could not be held responsible for debts incurred prior to that date. Your Mum however is liable to pay a contribution for her care based on a financial assessment which the council presumeably have now done and hence the bill. For more details of how this assessment is carried out please have a look at www.counselandcare.org.uk and their factsheets on paying for care. They also run a very good helpline.

This is understandably an immensely stressful situation for you, but in terms of paying for care £1000 is a small amount for the council and they should be well used to things taking some time to sort out. Don't let them bully you into paying from your own funds, as POA you are administering your Mum's finances and are responsible for doing that efficiently but if she doesn't have the money to pay the council will need to wait.

The first thing to check is whether the councils assessment is correct. Have they given you a detailed breakdown of the £84/week and the money owed? If not you should ask for one and I don't think it would do any harm just to write to them and say as you have just taken over as POA you are still trying to sort out your Mum's finances, her benefits have been suspended and you are unable to clear the money owed at present. When you get a clearer idea of where your Mum's finances stand you should be able to agree a repayment schedule with the council. In any case as the DWP are reviewing your Mum's benefits the council assessment may need changing in the light of any benefit alteration.

The council are unlikely to allow much or any previous accrued debt against the contributions they expect, but as POA you should keep detailed records of the money you spend on your Mum's behalf especially as she has a mental deterioration. You say you have paid day to day expenses, you should be aware that the council only make a weekly allowance of around £20 in the financial assessment for personal needs so they will expect a contribution of all other income (except any benefits which are exempted from assessment). So when you buy stuff for your Mum bear in mind you have a small weekly allowance to spend. Your Mum may find this difficult to understand and I sympathise if this is the case.

You say you are paying 3rd party top-ups for her care home fees. Did you agree to this with a full understanding of the commitment or did the council put an agreement in front of you and expect you to sign? The council can only request 3rd party top-ups if they are able to find a care home in your Mum's area which is willing to take your Mum at the councils agreed rate, but the client or relatives opt for a more expensive care home. If the council did not offer a care home placement without top-ups at the time your Mum was entering care they should not have asked for a 3rd party top-up. another element of this is the care needs assessment as the councils maximum contribution is established by the this assessment. I think it is normally one of 4 levels and then their may be a nursing element awarded on top which is financed by the NHS and paid direct to the council.

The system is hugely complicated and will take you some time to fully understand and no doubt the council SS dept. will give you absolutely minimal support. Try to compartmentalise this as it can take over your life and it doesn't need to be solved immediately. The priority is that your Mum is settled and happy in the care home setting and the money will be sorted out eventually.

I do think that savvy sue is correct and NHS funded continuing healthcare (CHC) may be worth a look at but this funding is extremely difficult to obtain. Essentially if it can be demonstrated that your Mum's primary need is medical then the cost of her care has to be funded by the NHS. This system is administered and assessed by the PCT (Primary Care Trust). As your Mum is already council assisted your potential saving here would be her contribution and your 3rd party top-up.