Fair Deal Advice Blog

Understanding Nursing Home Fees

When the time comes for you or a family member or friend to become a Resident in a Nursing Home it is very important that you understand the different fees and charges that may apply. Often this is a stressful time and it is easy to make mistakes or to under estimate the cost of care that you will end up paying. In this article I will highlight the main fees that you are likely to have to pay and explain to you what they are and what to look out for.

The Fees you are most likely to encounter are as follows:

• Private Nursing Home Fees
• Fair Deal/Nursing Home Support Scheme Fees
• Service Charges
• Ancillary Services Charges

The Private Nursing Home Fee’s:

This is the rate you pay if you enter the Nursing Home as a Private Resident. These fees are payable by Residents who due to their wealth may not apply for the Fair Deal and by Residents who are applying for Fair Deal but are waiting for approval and in the meantime need to avail of long- term care facilities. The Private Fee is a premium fee and typically can be anything from €200 to €400 higher than the Fair Deal rate.

The Private fees will cover your Bed and Board, laundry and some other services you require. Usually you would be entitled to a Private room when paying these fees. Extra charges may apply depending on the Nursing Home.

Fair Deal Fees:

Residents who apply and are approved for the Fair Deal/Nursing Home Support Scheme are entitled to the Fair Deal rate for their Nursing Home care. The Fair Deal rate is less than the Private rate as it is a negotiated rate that the National Treatment Purchase Fund has on behalf of the HSE agreed with individual Nursing Homes based on their cost of care. Approximately 95% of Residents throughout the country would be on the Fair Deal rate.

The Fair Deal rate not standardised and differs across Nursing Homes throughout the Country. The Fair Deal fees can range from as low as €800 per week to as high as €1,800 for some HSE run facilities. The average Fair Deal rate is about €950 per week.

Under the Fair Deal you are entitled to a Private Room in a Nursing Home of your choice (subject to bed availability. The Fee covers your bed and board laundry and your care costs.

Service Charges:

These fees are charged by Nursing Homes mainly to Fair Deal Residents to cover items such as entertainment, activities and other items that are not covered by the Fair Deal. It is very important when choosing a Nursing Home to ask how much is their service charge fee. These can range from €25 up to €300 per week depending on the Nursing Home and its location.

Ancillary services/extras charges:

These fees cover extras that the Resident may wish to avail of which will include Hairdressing, Physiotherapy, Aromatherapy, certain medications and dressing not covered by the Medical card, Sky TV, Hospital transfers and other services that the Resident may wish to avail of that is not covered by the Fair Deal or the Private rate.

It is very important when calculating how much a Resident’s Nursing Home Fees are going to be for budgeting to consider the above as they can often represent 25-30% extra costs per week over and above the Nursing Home fees.

If you require further information, please contact Tom Murray of www.fairdealadvice.ie by phone 086 601 5042 or by email advice@fairdealadvice.ie.

Source From: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/understanding-nursing-home-fees-tom-murray/