Sick tick of social care time bomb
JTHIS week the new chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, outlined his main concerns about future dangers to the nation’s health. And no, he wasn’t talking about coronavirus, although he has spoken sensibly on news bulletins about how mild this new strain of flu is, and how no one should be panicking.
But his comments on what awaits us all as we age in the medium-term were frightening. Not that we haven’t heard it all before, but no government has so far been brave enough to tackle the appalling crisis we face in looking after the elderly and infirm. Because it will cost a lot of money, and unlike HS2, it isn’t the sort of glamorous, eye-catching project politicians think will enhance their future prospects.
Prof.Whitty (below) reminds us that increasing numbers of people are surviving illnesses that would have killed them a generation ago.Which should be good news.The problem is how we provide care and treatment for those who are living longer but still need help. Social care is a time bomb, ticking away for us all. Did you know that a good care home can cost as much as £900 a week?
Who can afford that kind of long-term care without selling their home, making a nonsense of a lifetime of hard work and saving?
We all accept we work to pay our mortgages and raise our children. But seriously, working all your life only to sacrifice all to finance your own declining years is depressing beyond measure. Who would bother?
In our final years medical treatment and care should be a given in any humane and wealthy nation.We willingly pay for everyone’s child to go to school. Surely we should pay for every old person to live and die in comfort. So, how about everyone over the age of 45 paying into a compulsory social care fund?
Or tax-free care ISAs which could be passed on to our children if we don’t actually need them?
And how about our Prime Minister delivering on his election promise to “fix the crisis in social care once and for all”?
Come on Boris. High-speed trains may be important. But affordable social care is essential.