Health care versus social care costs

[BoringClare]

Health care in the UK is free at the point of delivery but you have to pay for most of your social care costs (eg if you have dementia you fund your care but if you have cancer you are treated free of charge in hospital). I wondered what people thought about this? Is it fair? Obviously if social care was free everyone would have to pay more in taxes to fund it.

The social care issue is a big one, at a time when some people say our NHS etc is spread too thinly - and we are living much longer.

As in our family our brains go before our hearts and i have already gave this some thought, I would make TWO observations.

Firstly governments are inefficient at delivering services, especially cost wise AND open to political party changes.

Secondly our personal needs will vary, as will our family support situation, so rather than tax EVERYONE to pay for quangos;

• STOP raiding pensions, as the more of us that can look after ourselves and are also taxed at later dates on that 'healthy' income, the less burden on future taxpayers, and more money of future budgets that goes on those who cannot afford it.

• Adopt a national wrinkly social care insurance policy from a young age, with small premiums (like an endowment policy) that should it not be needed to keep you in your own home and get daily care, it can become party of your estate - hopefully some future government won't claim as 'Death Taxes'.

As the daughter of a man with alzheimers and who has spent £50000 on his care last year, I think it is unfair. Obviously, if things had worked out differently and he'd got cancer, his needs would have been met for free. Because dementia's needs are for social support, you pay everything. I think isitme's idea of a social care insurance policy is good. I think everyone should pay into, like national insurance and get supported at home or in residential care if dementia strikes, without having to pay for everything.