CASH deficits in the NHS are having a knock-on effect on social care, where services are busting their budgets as they strive to pick up activity that health has left behind.
That’s the claim made by the Association of Directors of Social Services (ADSS), whose research suggests that NHS organisations are “narrowing the definition of healthcare”.
As a result, reports Community Care (June 15), more pressure is being heaped on social services.
One council, Hampshire, says that its adult services department overspent by £11 million last year and faces a £20 million overspend this year largely because of a “redefinition” of healthcare.
Now the council is considering restricting care to the most dependent people. Rea Mattocks, its adult services director, says: “People are being discharged from hospital when previously they would not have been. The issue for Hampshire and many other places is that social care budgets have not been increased to accommodate this change.”
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A submission from the ADSS and the Local Government Association to the Health Select Committee’s inquiry into NHS deficits outlines the concerns of the two organisations.
But NHS leaders are equally worried about “cost-shunting” and say that healthcare is facing increased demand as social services raise the bar on eligibility criteria.