23/12/2014
Recent data from the Health and Social Care information Centre (HSCIC) show that there are fewer than 294,080 elderly aged 65 and above who are getting government-funded care at home.
Currently, 853,615 old age pensioners receive essential care that allows them to live independently. That number is down from 1,147,695 back in 2010 when the Cameron government has yet to impose its mark on social and health care policies.
The figure is not surprising considering the huge cuts on social care, which amounts to £3.5billion, that the government has resorted to during the last three years.
Shadow Health Secretary Andy Burham of the Labour Party told the Mirror last December 20 that big social care cuts will add more burden to hospitals already pressured with mounting A&E admissions.
Latest figures from the NHS suggests that hospitals across UK are struggling with increasing admissions and patients bear the brunt of longer wait periods. NHS said only 89.9 per cent of patients the previous week were checked within 4 hours after being admitted, a far lesser number than its target of 95 per cent. A record number of 111,062 emergency admissions was also reported by the NHS for the previous week.
Burham is putting all the blame on the government for the current predicament. He said: “The Government’s cuts to social care are a root cause of the current A&E hospital crisis. Without support at home, older people are turning to A&Es and thousands are waiting hours on end on trolleys for a bed. It is a complete false economy.”
