THE Health minister wants sheltered housing to be considered as an option for aid under the States’ long-term-care insurance scheme. But the Social Security Department said that such a move would force up contributions and is resisting the call.

Deputy Peter Roffey said the matter should be addressed by the States.

‘It raises issues about the long-term-care insurance scheme, which at the moment will pay for people to go into residential care but does not cover the sheltered-housing option,’ he said.

‘It’s something that the States will have to revisit in the near future – Health and Social Services would like to look at it again.

‘What we don’t want to see is people feeling forced into residential care in order to benefit from the insurance scheme when their first choice would be to go into sheltered housing.’

Deputy Roffey said that a needs-assessment panel already considered people’s level of dependency before the insurance scheme paid for their care.

‘We believe if they qualify to go into residential care, they should have the choice of residential care or sheltered housing,’ he added.

The scheme paid out nearly £9m. last year, but currently covers only private-sector residential and nursing homes.

Social Security minister Mary Lowe said it had always been clear that the Rosaire Avenue sheltered-housing project would not be covered by the scheme.

‘The social-service care that some of the more dependent residents would need was to be paid for by the Health and Social Services Department from its community services budget,’ she said.

‘The States approved extra staff and resources for community care as a key part of the long-term-care scheme.’

Deputy Lowe said that there were no plans to include sheltered housing.

‘That would alter the financing of the scheme and would probably mean higher social-security contributions,’ she said.

‘Paying for sheltered housing is a short step away from paying for care in your own home.

‘That would be very expensive indeed.’

The scheme, which has been running for three years, is funded by a contribution rate of 1.4% of earnings or income.

The department hopes to hold the rate for 15 years if there are no major changes to the benefits.

At the end of 2005, the scheme was paying £8.9m. in fees for 302 people in residential homes and 139 in nursing homes.

People in the homes must pay the first £140 per week themselves. Then the scheme pays up to a further £312.50 for residential care and £581 per week for nursing care.