Friday, December 24, 2021

Fair Deal Nursing Home Support Scheme Ireland - Paying for Cost of Care in 2022

 

A recent report released by the Departments of Health and Public Expenditure and Reform revealed how so many residents of Private Nursing Homes paid greater amounts of cost of care, even after living under the Nursing Home Support Scheme (NHSS). For some people, the amount of weekly contribution was almost double the prices at public nursing homes.

Here is a fact check.

Nursing Home Support Scheme - What You Pay For

 For most of its part, The Fair Deal Scheme covers the basic nursing home costs like bedding, food, lodging and laundry. But it will not count for “extra” expenses such as physiotherapy, hairstyling, therapies etc. While your medical expenses will be considered for exemption from the cost of care, your future medical needs would have to be dependent on savings that are left off after paying the cost of care. Which is 20% of your cash asset + €36,000 out of your savings.

If you are planning for the future you have to consider that you are making arrangements for a time when costs are bent on rising, from what it is in the recent year.

A piece of recent news published in the Irish Times pointed out the situation, how between the years 2015 and 2019 the cost of care at public nursing homes have risen from €523 to €624.

The increased expenditures of €100 per resident per week borne by Public Nursing Homes were compensated by larger health budgets, putting the cost differential at 73% if invoiced to the NHSS.

 

What Makes The Costs Rise

The study report further indicated how the number of applicants for the NHSS funding has increased dramatically, 2.4% between 2015 and 2019, that’s 23,629 people. Meanwhile, the average price charged to the system for a public nursing home per resident per week increased by 13.3%, from €1,426 to €1,616.

The rising costs are an inevitable part of Nursing Home Care, with or without the Fair Deal.

Economic slump, rising costs, and demands of people will always stir the costs to change. In the recent report, the impact of the COVID-19 was a grave reason for “funding discrimination”  in nursing home care, posing a "challenge to sustainability" with some smaller nursing facilities having to close.

New Guidelines for the Fair Deal Scheme - To Sell or Not To Sell A House

But above all the hurdles, the Fair Deal Scheme is in the phase to change for real by the year 2022.

One major passing out happened in October 2021, with the publication of the HSE’s new guidelines, which would finally allow homeowners and farmers the 3-year Cap facility. It will allow them to keep their farmlands, principal residences and even sell a house after successfully paying the first 3years’ worth of cost of care.

The net proceeds will be charged as a cash asset until the client has been a resident of the nursing home for three years, after which they will not be chargeable.

 

You Need To Speak To An Expert Before Making A Decision

The fact remains that the Fair Deal Nursing Home Support Scheme would work differently for different people, and if you are not making a conscious decision, you might end up depriving yourself of certain benefits or exemptions.

It is critical to seek legal advice before selling a home while receiving nursing home care at this time. Because it may have ramifications for the person's future participation or eligibility for the fair deal, and because it will not benefit all people, notably those in Dublin with higher-value properties.

Friday, December 17, 2021

Asset Contribution and the House Rules of Fair Deal Scheme Ireland

 

Do you own a house that you wish to hand over to your family members or children? If you are a Fair Deal Scheme applicant this could get complex and to some extent impossible. But thanks to the new reforms of the Nursing Homes Support Scheme (Amendment) Bill 2021, there has been a new ray of hope for homeowners and farmland owners to secure their homes and farmland for their families while living under long-term nursing home care.


According to the terms of the Nursing Home Support Scheme, also known as the Fair Deal Scheme in Ireland, applicants could not simply pass over their home to their children in order to avoid having to pay an asset contribution. Your property handovers will be reviewed by the Health and Security Executive (HSE), and if you have done so in the five years leading up to your Fair Deal application, you may not be eligible for the payment.

 

The Nursing Homes Support Scheme (Amendment) Bill 2021 has passed the Oireachtas and is now awaiting signing by the president. And a lot of change and the good news is on the way that will make things a lot easier in terms of the Asset Contribution.

 

The Nursing Homes Support Scheme (Amendment) Bill 2021

 

This reformation demonstrates the scheme's position and commitment to protecting family farms and businesses from the costs of nursing home care.

 

Under new regulations, family-owned farms and businesses will no longer be included when calculating nursing-home care costs, when they agree to labour the farm or business for a minimum of six years.

The Extension of the 3-Year Cap on the Sale of Principal Residence

 

The Irish Government has stuck to the scheme's core principle of fairness by treating the residence and the revenues from its sale in the same way. The legislation not only establishes a 3-year asset contribution cap but also extends the cap on contributions to the cost of care, which is computed by comparing the value of a large residence to the proceeds from its sale.

 

The HSE has just announced new guidelines that allow residents to sell their homes once their application has been approved and they have been placed in care. The net proceeds will be treated as a cash asset until the client has been a resident of the nursing home for three years, at which point they will be charged as a liability.

 

The HSE has just announced new guidelines that allow residents to sell their homes once their application has been approved and they have been placed in care. The net proceeds will be charged as a cash asset until the client has been a resident of the nursing home for three years, after which they will not be chargeable.

This adjustment is meant to remove any barriers for those who want to sell their vacant property while on Fair Deal, which is an important consideration in the context of the housing crisis, according to the department.

 

Freedom From The Worry of Empty Houses

 

This modification would relieve many families of the burden of worrying about vacant residences and how to deal with them, as well as speed up the administration of estates once the resident has passed away. It should also help to free up much-needed housing that is now vacant.

While this is welcome news for many, I strongly advise seeking legal advice before selling a home, as the property may not be able to be sold due to the owners' lack of capacity, there may be implications for the person's continued participation/ eligibility for the fair deal, and it will not benefit all residents, particularly those in Dublin with higher-value homes.

Friday, December 3, 2021

Common Complexities Associated with the Fair Deal Scheme and How to Manage Them

 

As a concept the Nursing Homes Support Scheme is straightforward. The plan is aimed at providing full-time home or nursing facility care for a certain group of people who do not have the financial or familial means to care for them. For most of its part, the more you have, the more costly it will be for you. Many families and individuals face unprecedented complexities due to a lack of understanding of the scheme and taking unconscious steps in a hurry. This article is aimed to enlighten future applicants about all such situations and how to deal with them so that you can have a truly Fair Deal.

Understanding the Nursing Home Support Scheme Cost of Care

 

The core design of the fair deal scheme simplifies it to be most helpful for particular candidates who are on pension and have few or no assets.

 

This is because, while the plan provides financial assistance, it does not fully finance your nursing home care. The candidate must contribute 80% of their income and savings, as well as 7.5% of the cost of their non-cash assets.

 

For different individuals, the scheme works differently under the plan, although the contribution is the same for all unless the applicant has a spouse or family member with whom they share a home or income.

 

 

The Common Areas of the Fair Deal Complexities

 

Although the plan is open to everyone in need of long-term nursing home care. The layout of it entails that while you pay less if you have a low income and little assets, you wind up paying a lot more if you have a large estate - nearly as much as you’d be paying for private facilities. Now, nursing home care is not the only expense you’d be having, the following areas are often subject to complexities amid the application process:

 

       Tax Relief

       Medical Expenses

       Looking after a Spouse

       Looking after a family

       Understanding the significance of a Power of Attorney

       Guidance of family inheritance

       Guidance about family businesses and farms

       The nursing home loan scheme

  

Another major complexity is saving non-cash assets such as homes, farms and businesses. While cash assets can be transferred on a weekly or monthly basis, how can someone pay against a property?

 

This pushes the applicant to the clip wherein they have to sell their house or get it under the mortgage. The Nursing Home Loan or Ancillary State Support is what deters the applicant from selling or mortgaging their house. Meanwhile, the cash asset contribution would exempt Taxes, Critical Medical Expenses, Caring for a child or other unemployed family members. Moreover, the first €36,000 out of savings would be exempted too.

 

Thanks to the Dail, the new amendment is now in place which secures the 3-year cap for farming families and principal residences to get an exemption from the cost of care after a period of 3years.

 

You Can Consult Independent Care Representatives to Understand the Fair Deal Scheme Better 

 Independent fair deal advisors work on their own and are responsible for leading candidates through the process of application, management, making a decision and avoiding mistakes when seeking the Fair Deal Scheme. It is a safe way out when you can take the right step by asking the correct questions at the right time.

 Independent advisors can also act as a Care Representative to operate on behalf of candidates suffering from Dementia and other medical conditions that render them physically or mentally incapable to handle the procedure on their own. Care Representatives, who are often nominated by a family member or the HSE, represent an application and carry out specified acts on their behalf. They assist applicants who require care but are unable to complete the whole procedure on their own.