A room in a residential care center became 90 euros per month more expensive last year. This year there will be another significant increase. ‘The elderly threaten to remain in a vulnerable situation at home because the financial barrier to a residential care center is too great,’ says Nils Vandenweghe, director of the Flemish Council for the Elderly.
On 1 January, prices for residential care centers were almost 10 percent higher than last year. How affordable is this still?
“In itself, people’s pensions are indexed at the same rate, but that does not alter the fact that the invoice of a residential care center is often a lot higher than their pension. With every indexation that is added, the net gap between what comes in and what has to be spent becomes a bit bigger. At the rate of current inflation, we are very concerned. We get a lot of concerned responses.”
“The problem is that there are a lot of additional costs on top of the normal daily price: for medication, the hairdresser, the laundry, the telephone, you name it. Those extras are also becoming more expensive, while the Flemish government does not monitor them. So we are sailing a bit blind on that front. Just as we do not know exactly how many residents cannot afford the prices.”
What if people don’t arrive with their pension?
“There are many children who spontaneously contribute to their parents’ bills. But those costs come on top of their own family’s high bills. Older people who do not arrive in this way can turn to the local OCMW. This helps financially, although the OCMW usually also passes on the bill to the children, taking into account their financial capacity. As a child, you have a legal obligation to support your parents who are in need of care.”
The residential care centers themselves point to their rising costs for food and energy. Isn’t the price increase for residents logical?
“Of course we understand that it must remain financially viable. But that also applies to the residents. They never know how long they will have to bear the bill of a residential care center, as they do not know how long they will live. That uncertainty is sometimes already a brake, and perhaps even more so in the future. The elderly are in danger of being left in a vulnerable situation because the financial barrier to a residential care center is too high.”
What can the government do?
“At the moment, the Flemish basic funding for the facilities falls short. For example, it does not cover the full seniority of the staff, which means that this is passed on to the residents. The care budget of 135 euros for the residents is also far too low. This amount has not been indexed since 2009, although 5 euros per month have been added this year. That increase is a piece of cake when you see how high inflation is.”
“The positive thing is that the allowance for the most vulnerable elderly is being increased. In concrete terms, there are five categories in the care budget: the more dependent an elderly person is, the larger the budget he or she receives. Until now, however, many elderly people remained in a low category for too long, while their dependency increased. From now on, the Flemish government therefore says that residents of residential care centers will automatically fall into category 4 or 5. So they finally get the full protection they deserve.”
On May 1, an OCMW rest home already cost 1,818 euros, a commercial rest home 2,088 euros. Wouldn’t it be better to stay home for that money and get help?
“In any case, we see that many elderly people prefer to live at home as long as possible, but some people really need support at any time of the day. Just think of people with advanced dementia. In addition, there are also elderly people who sit alone at home all day and fully blossom as soon as they move to the residential care center. It is therefore important that the financial threshold does not become too high.”
