Projections of future expediture on long-term carefor older people

How best to finance the long-term care of older people is the subject of considerable national debate in the UK, as in a number of other countries. The Report of the UK Royal Commission on Long Term Care in 1999, followed by the introduction of free personal care in Scotland in July 2002, has led to continuing pressure for further reform of the financing system in the rest of the UK. The essence of the debate on long-term care is about how far people should fund their own care and how far they should be publicly funded. Underlying the debate are concerns about the future affordability of long-term care.