Paying for Care – Page 3 – pensionsandsavings.com

Is Government going to introduce saving incentives for social care?

December 14, 2016 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

14 December 2016 Jeremy Hunt is right we need for private savings to help fund care crisis There’s no one solution but private savings must be part of the mix Care costs much higher for older women than older men Government can introduce tax incentives to help families save for care costs Care ISAs, Workplace Saving Plans, Eldercare vouchers, Family Care Saving Plans free of Inheritance Tax Consider using auto-enrolment and free Guidance to kick-start care savings as part of…

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Care ISAs and incentives for care saving

February 2, 2015 Ros Altmann Comments 2 comments

2 February 2015 Government considering savings incentives for social care Possible ways to incentivise care saving schemes: 1. Care ISA 2. Tax free pension withdrawal 3. Care saving in auto-enrolment Could help millions of middle income families not just the well-off Government must tackle lack of care funding: Are Ministers finally waking up to the need to help people save to pay for social care? I do hope so. It seems they may be considering savings incentives, to help…

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Social care crisis – urgent action needed

January 20, 2015 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

20 January 2015 Action to address care crisis cannot wait any longer Elderly people are suffering due to council and care company cost-cutting All parts of the system are failing and Government has not yet offered solutions Tax incentives to help families save for care costs are needed as £72,000 cap is too high for affordable insurance Care ISAs, Family Care Plans and Workplace Savings free of Inheritance Tax Use auto-enrolment and new free Guidance to kick-start care savings There…

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We need tax breaks for care saving, not more means-testing

September 4, 2014 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

4 September 2014 More means-testing and tax increases will disincentivise private income and could worsen looming care crisis We need incentives to encourage people to save for care – Care ISAs and tax-free pension withdrawals, plus inheritance tax exemption for care savings Health and social care budgets must be integrated to provide fairer system Radical reform of social care is required: I welcome the report released today by the King’s Fund, which highlights yet again the flaws in our system…

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Budget ISA moves – ISA savings for care

March 21, 2014 Ros Altmann Comments 3 comments

21 March 2014 Nicer ISA savings – what could be NISA! And how about a Care ISA? As the dust starts to settle a little following the sudden Budget improvements to Individual Savings Accounts (ISA) rules, I thought it might be helpful to note down some more thoughts. Wouldn’t it be great if the new found freedoms could be used to help fund social care. An ISA tax free savings account, designated to pay for care costs, could help with the…

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15-minute care visits are an affront to decency

October 7, 2013 Ros Altmann Comments 0 Comment

7 October 2013 Care staff earn less than £1.50 for each 15-minute care visit Each visit earns less than a cup of coffee as private care firms and councils cut costs Such social care cutbacks are an affront to decent standards of care Social Care crisis is deepening 15-minute care visits are putting patients and careworkers in an impossible position: The Leonard Cheshire charity report (see link here http://www.lcdisability.org/?lid=8843 ) highlights the degrading impact of 15-minute social care visits on…

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Who cares – zero hours contracts for careworkers while care crisis worsens

September 16, 2013 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

Zero hours contracts for private sector careworkers are not conducive to delivering quality care Trying to fund care on the cheap compromises quality Treating care staff decently will require funding reform as care crisis grows As the party conferences shine a spotlight on the problem of zero hours contracts, this seems an opportune time to highlight the working conditions of Britain’s private sector careworkers. Zero hours contracts are standard in this industry. The staff are also usually expected to fund…

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Care crisis demands urgent action – savings incentives would help families prepare

September 4, 2013 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

Yet another report highlighting the scale of the social care crisis. The research by NFU Mutual shows that older generations are increasingly facing crippling care costs in later life that they have not prepared for. Families are finding that their lifetime savings are at risk if they become ill in the wrong way. Those who have cancer or other illnesses that qualify for NHS treatment will have all their care covered by taxpayers. Those unlucky enough to develop dementia or…

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Pensions are not the best way to save for care

July 19, 2013 Ros Altmann Comments 1 comment

Pensions are not the best way to save for care – we all hope to need a pension but only one in four will need care Most wont reach the cap and will pay for all their care – that may be socially necessary but we need to prepare for it Cap won’t cover all the costs and deferred payment plans should be provided for home care too, to avoid expensive equity release As the Government unveils its consultation…

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