Draft Charging Policy for Social Care Services
In this section
- Managing property and finances
- Advocacy
- Deferred payments
- Invoicing for charges
- Non-payment of charges and debt
- Deprivation of Assets
- Additional costs (AC) for permanent / temporary admissions to a care home
- Additional costs (AC) for respite/short-term admissions to a care home
- Application of the rules to individual cases
- Reviews and methods of appeal
- Appendix 1 - Variations/adjustments to charges for financially assessed services
- Appendix 2 - Operational rules for commencement and termination of packages of care and support
Residential placements
9. Residential placements
Carmarthenshire will charge for all placements into a care home, irrespective of service or duration, unless the service is defined in the legislation as being one where a charge cannot be applied.
The charge that will be applied, will be the full cost of the placement cost per night for placements into a care home. Carmarthenshire will charge for each night that the person with care and support needs is assessed to access the service. Accessing a service for part of a day will be charged at the full day rate. Person with care and support needs will be charged for the day of admission but will not be charged for the day of discharge.
Carmarthenshire will charge an annual administration fee to residents whose liquid capital exceeds the capital threshold and could arrange their care home placement themselves (or there is a person who has legal authority to act on the person’s behalf that could arrange the placement).
Carmarthenshire will continue to charge to a person with care and support needs in the following circumstances:
- Hospital admission - Where a person with care and support needs is admitted to hospital, and the care home placement is retained, then the person with care and support needs will continue to be charged their financially assessed contribution during their absence from the care home.
If the council reduces the payment to the care home to a rate less than the person’s financially assessed contribution, then the council would reduce the person’s contribution accordingly.
Where the absence exceeds 28 days Carmarthenshire reserves the right to reassess the person’s needs and/or terminate the care home placement.
If there is an Additional Cost for the placement, this will continue to be charged during the person’s absence from the care home.
- Temporary discharge from a care home, with the view of permanently residing in the community – When a person whose care and support needs are normally met by a temporary/permanent care home placement is temporarily discharged from the care home, with the view of this becoming a permanent discharge from the care home, the person will continue to be charged for their care home placement whilst the placement is retained. The amount the person will be charged for their placement may reduce, to take into consideration additional costs which will be incurred for the period they are absent from the care home (e.g. food, utilities), where these costs are evidenced, and the person does not have sufficient means to fund the costs themselves.
This will be for a maximum of 4 weeks and where the absence from the care home has been agreed in advance by Carmarthenshire. Where the absence exceeds 28 days Carmarthenshire reserves the right to reassess the person’s needs and/or terminate the care home placement.
If the person is assessed as requiring care and support during the period, they are absent from the care home, they will not be charged for these services as they will continue to be charged for the retained care home placement.
If there is an Additional Cost for the placement, this will continue to be charged during the person’s absence from the care home.
