Whitehall could revive cap on social care costs

PLANS to reform social care will be the next major health policy battleground, with Whitehall officials examining plans to revive the idea of a social care costs cap.

Theresa May will make clear today in a speech that budgets for social care and the NHS will be set out in the autumn spending review.

The Treasury is hoping that, having signed off £20billion for the NHS over five years, it will be possible to reform social care without having to spend billions.

The Local Government Association warned late last year that adult social care faced an annual funding gap of about £2.3 billion by 2020.

A cross-party review in 2011 chaired by Sir Andrew Dilnot recommended a lifetime cap on care costs. Currently, individuals who do not fit means-tested criteria face unlimited costs.

One Treasury source said there was an argument for bold reforms in return for giving so much money to the NHS. “Rather than putting more money into social care you should use this as an opportunity to tackle some of those issues, a more palatable version of Dilnot.”

Mr Hunt will now enter talks with Treasury officials on social care funding with a long-awaited Green Paper expected within six weeks.