Four year delay to nursing care cost cap


After weeks of rumour and speculation, the Government has confirmed that implementation of Phase 2 of the Care Act 2014, including the £72,000 ‘cap’ on personal contributions towards care, will be delayed until 2020.


This announcement represents a significant change and the announced delays and the care needs assessment system still mean there is a post code lottery for care. It is important for clients who wish to have choice and control to


retain sufficient wealth to be able to compete in a progressively competitive care market where money talks and gives massive advantage.


Care costs are rising significantly faster than inflation and certainly faster than house prices, so, planning ahead and considering the potential need for care is prudent. The need for high quality, specialist financial advice will be even


greater as people look to ensure that they do not run out of money and can make the best use of their assets when making care choices.


Let me put it this way, if someone were to tell you in exact days, months and years how much longer you would live (a mortality time clock perhaps?) would you view life differently – would you change anything? Maybe not immediately but I am sure as the number of days, months and years gradually reduced down you would start to prioritise certain things i.e. time with family, friends, completing things you always wanted to do etc.


I am also sure you would not work right up until the numbers turned to zero. Wouldn’t life be so much easier if we all had a form of mortality time clock? You would have little regrets as you could plan everything around the known time you had left and you would also know how much time you had with other people until their clock turned to zero.


The fact though is that many of us cannot accept that we do all have some form of diminishing clock attached to our individual lives, the only difference from the example above is that we cannot see the numbers. We sometimes stubbornly believe that there will always be enough time, even though the exact opposite is true. This is the real reason why people take time for granted; simply because they are unrealistic about how much they have available.


This may all seem a bit depressing, but it shouldn’t be; far from it – the fact of the matter is that if you are reading this you still have numbers on the clock. The main consideration is whether you are going to spend them wisely before they run out?


If you want to discuss the changes in your individual circumstances or for a family member please speak to your usual Old Mill contact.


Would you like to know more?


Contact Chris Tweedie on 01225 701217 or email chris.tweedie@oldmillgroup.co.uk


See page 21 to find out about investing for the future 20


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