Today, the Care Act 2014 came into force. The legislation includes rights for those receiving care and those who provide it to their loved ones. The major changes which will come about as a result of the Care Act 2014 are being introduced in what is being dubbed the biggest shake-up for 60 years.
Four major changes are being introduced:
The creation of national eligibility criteria establishing for the first time when someone should be entitled to help – to date, it has been up to councils to set their own criteria
A duty on councils to offer schemes by which those who need to pay for residential care can get a loan from their local council, which is then paid back from their estate after death
Giving carers for the first time the same right to assessment and support as the people they care for; before, they had to provide “substantial care on a regular basis” to get an assessment
Those who pay for care themselves will be entitled to go to councils to get advice and information about the care system.
Today’s changes, mark a major milestone in care services, which experts say have hardly changed since the current system was created along with the NHS after the Second World War.
David Pearson, president of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, said the changes were ‘probably the most significant development’ since 1948.
