NEWS RELEASE FROM THE
REGISTERED NURSING HOME ASSOCIATION
Issued 9th February 2005
MASSIVE RISE IN FEES CHARGED BY GOVERNMENT REGULATOR
CONDEMNED BY NURSING HOME BODY:
OLDER PEOPLE MARGINALISED YET AGAIN - CLAIM
A rise of 20 per cent in the fees charged to nursing homes by the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) from 1st April 2005 was condemned today as ‘totally unjustified’ by the Registered Nursing Home Association (RNHA).
Responding to an announcement of the fee increase in the House of Commons by Health Minister Stephen Ladyman, the RNHA said it was extremely disappointed that yet another additional cost was being arbitrarily imposed on the nursing home sector without consultation or negotiation with those affected by the decision.
RNHA chief executive officer Frank Ursell commented: “On matters of care for older people, the government presides over one way traffic. It is good at announcing that nursing homes must pay more for this and more for that, but it is not so good at making extra resources available to help improve standards and meet nursing homes’ rising costs, many of which are the direct result of the government’s own actions.
“The Minister’s statement in the House of Commons yesterday (8th February) means that, since 2002, some of the fees charged by the government’s regulatory body will virtually have doubled.
“By contrast, the average amount paid by social services to nursing homes to provide 24-hour care to highly vulnerable older people has risen over the past year by as little as around three per cent, whilst the latest national minimum wage rise alone pushed up our operating costs by some five per cent.”
He added: “Patients and those who look after them could be forgiven for thinking that there is one law for government bureaucrats and another for those in the frontline of providing and receiving care. We shall be writing to the Minister on behalf of nursing homes to protest against this decision.
“We should also like to know what increases, if any, we can expect to receive from April onwards in the amount which social services departments pay towards the cost of individuals’ care. Those increases must compensate us for all the additional costs beyond our control, including this latest CSCI bombshell.
“As things stand, the vast majority of homes have no idea what their budgets will be for the twelve months from April. That is no way to run the care sector. It reflects the degree to which the funding of care for older people is at the bottom of the government’s list of priorities. Yet again, the old and the frail are being marginalised.
“The one thing we do know is that the NHS contribution towards an individual’s nursing care is set to rise by just three per cent in the coming year. This, in our view, is well below the increase needed to keep pace with costs.”
END
Notes to editors:
1. Nursing homes have to pay fees to the Commission for Social Care Inspection when they register. They also have to pay an ongoing annual fee based on a flat rate plus an amount per bed. Other fees are charged if there are changes in the nature of the registration.
2. From 1st April 2005, the fees charged to nursing homes on registration will rise from £1,584 to £1,901. The fees charged to register a manager will rise from £432 to £518.
3. From 1st April 2005, the annual fees charged to nursing homes by CSCI will rise from a flat rate of £216 to a flat rate of £259. In addition, they will now have to pay £86 per place instead of £72 per place.
For further information and comment, please contact:
Frank Ursell, Chief Executive Officer, RNHA
Tel: 07785 227000 (mobile) or 0121-454 2511 (office)
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