According to the Diakonie, people who live in a nursing home will have to pay more in the future, despite the planned reform in the nursing system developed by Karl Lauterbach. According to Maria Loheide from the board of the Diakonie, the costs would continue to rise from July.
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“Residents of nursing homes must reckon with the fact that they will have to pay more money for their place in the home, despite the planned reform of nursing care insurance. “The costs will continue to rise from July,” said Maria Loheide, responsible for social policy on the board of the Diakonie, the “Tagesspiegel”.
Responsible for this is a new personnel assessment tool, which is intended to improve staffing levels. “But if the nursing care funds do not bear the additional costs, the residents will have to pay for them,” Loheide warned. Last year, numerous nursing homes had already increased residents’ contributions in order to pass on the increased costs for staff, energy, food and services. “Actually, the long-term care insurance funds would have to raise the nursing care rates accordingly.” But a quarter of the funds categorically refuse to renegotiate the current contracts.
“The residents, whose own share continues to increase, are left behind,” said Loheide. According to Diakonie, the planned care reform will not solve the problem. “The surcharge that home residents get is below the inflation rate. Inflation is eating up the surcharge,” criticized Loheide. According to Diakonie, long-term care insurance is underfunded. “We need a strong increase in contributions and a tax subsidy.” In addition, according to Diakonie, other sources of income should be used: “Contributors should also pay contributions on income from renting and leasing and on their investment income,” says Loheide.
Report with material from the dts news agency
Photo: Elderly woman in a wheelchair, via dts news agency