Elderly & Dementia patients could be at risk as care homes face closer, it has been claimed.

At a recent meeting, roughly 30 care providers told Conwy council that lower fees were putting these homes out of business. Conwy has now delayed a decision on rates for the coming year.

The council have spoken up and said it was ‘aware’ of social under-funding and that they have tried to ensure fees are “fair & affordable”. They have later explained that they are working on the problem with local authorities.

One care home in Colwyn Bay have said that they could not accept the council’s rates & that if they did, they “would go out of business this year.”

In recent weeks, 4 homes have closed or are in the process of doing so as a result of the under-funding.

Clive Nadin, owner of Abbey Dale House Care Home in Colwyn Bay said that this situation could add to the problem of patients blocking hospital beds as they have no where to go. In his opinion, this is more serious than Covid. “Starving care homes of funding is a foolish false economy because there are hundreds of people stuck in hospitals whose medical treatment is completed and they can’t be discharged because there’s nowhere for them to go.”

Mario Kreft (Care Forum Wales chairman), claimed Councillors had a daily £28 meal allowance, while care homes were only allowed £4.79 a day to feed residents.

He said additional funding granted during the pandemic had “tapered off” and not been replaced.

There was also, he said, a staff shortage because care homes could not compete with money offered by supermarkets.

What are your thoughts on this?