Advice on care package finances

[Motnight]

Hi all. I have had really good advice on this topic previously so am hoping to get some more!

MIL, 80, is bed bound and has a number of health issues including cancer. After a health crisis she came home mid August. Carers have been visiting 4 times a day. My BIL has (on his own insistence) dealt with all the practicalities. He assured us that she was on the care pathway that meant that she didn't have to contribute financially to this.

It now transpires that she is on a different care pathway where her care was financed for 6 weeks only. This funding has come to an end and the council are asking for payment. Is there anything that we can do about this? Or should she be paying? She owns most of her own house (I think that when sold a percentage goes to the council anyway as they paid for work done previously). Not sure about savings.

She is linked in with a palliative care team. We are not sure how much longer she has left to live, it could be up to 2 years.

Has anyone got any experience around this sort of situation that they are willing to share, please?

Age UK has some information that might help you sort this out.

Get in touch with social services if see will be assessed and care package put in place they will do max 4 visits a day and she will be assessed and may have to contribute they take savings into account but it's a good few thousand you are allowed .
If she need to go into care she would have to pay it herself if she needed nursing care that would be majority funded . The council will pay the lot and take it out of the house when anything happens to her.

My stepmother is in a care home with severe dementia and my Dad is very unwell so also can't live at home (he's living with us now). Both of them, plus my own mum who was seriously ill last year, had an initial 6 weeks of care funded by the council, then after a financial assessment to ascertain that they would be self finding (property owners) it was deemed that if further care was needed then it would be payable by them. As it happened my mum recovered significantly and is fine at home just with support from us and my Dad is here with us. But my stepmother care bill is £600 a week (worth every penny as she's getting the specialist care we are unable to give). Currently the invoice stands at £70k (it can't be paid until she or my Dad dies and the house can be sold as there was no LPOA on her when she was able. It is very expensive! Even carers coming in is very expensive when there is property owned by that person.

Thanks everyone, some really useful info.

If she has complex health issues, or is terminally ill, then there's a possibility she could have fully funded care, not means tested, through something called NHS Continuing Health Care.

If you haven't already, she will be entitled to attendance allowance.

Assuming you are in England:

It's usually 6 weeks free upon discharge and subsequent care is means tested. She should have had or be due to have a finance assessment from the LA.

They are within their rights to charge for care once the six weeks are up. Possibly she will only have to pay some towards it unless she has over £23250 in savings or has a v high pension,

If on a low income with low savings she may be 0 charge. Make sure she has had the assessment.

It's usually 6 weeks free upon discharge Up to 6 weeks. Once they decide that either a) she no longer needs the care or b) that she will need long term care it becomes chargeable. And they can make that decision at any time - they do not have to wait till the 6 weeks are up.

They are within their rights to charge for care once the six weeks are up Or before, if it has become apparent that long term care will be needed.

Even carers coming in is very expensive when there is property owned by that person. If the person is being cared for in their own home, the value of the home should not be included in the financial assessment.

If she has complex health issues, or is terminally ill, then there's a possibility she could have fully funded care, not means tested, through something called NHS Continuing Health Care. It's extremely difficult to get. For example, needing to be in a nursing home is not enough, neither is having dementia. So don't get your hopes up, but definitely apply for it, and get support in wording your application. There's an accelerated procedure if the person is very near end of life.

My Mum has three care calls a day, owns her own home, only has a small amount of savings. We had a financial assessment and she pays £82 per week towards her care package.
You need to ask social services for a financial assessment.