About 20,000 people with low incomes living in residential care centres who are already receiving care benefits will receive extra money from the Flemish government to pay their expenses from 1 April.
The extra care budget will, on average, amount to an extra €125 net per month; for residents with the Income Guarantee for the Elderly (IGO), it is an extra €214 net per month. Residents already entitled to the care budget will automatically receive the higher amount.
"That means that the total intervention we do as a Flemish government increases to an amount between €550 and €700 per month," said Flemish Minister of Welfare Hilde Crevits. "Because we absolutely realise that the bill in the residential care centre is a big challenge for many people."
The Flemish Social Protection (VSB) pays out various care budgets to people with care needs. One of them is the budget for elderly people residential care centres – a monthly budget for over-65s with limited income. This is a cash budget that they can spend freely. The amount depends on how much care someone needs, their family composition and income, among other things.
Care categories
Those who do not yet have a care budget and want to apply for one have to follow the procedure to see how much care and support the person needs. Based on that analysis, they will be placed into one of five categories. The greater the care need, the higher the care category and the higher the monthly care budget for the elderly.
From 1 April, residents with major care needs and low income will automatically be placed in the highest care categories 4 and 5.
Care category 4 means they can get a care budget of up to €556 per month. The most financially vulnerable residents with an income guarantee for the elderly are automatically placed in care category 5. Those who are already entitled to category 5 today will also retain that entitlement. Care category 5 corresponds to a care budget of up to €683 per month.
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Current and future residents of residential care centres, who are already entitled to a care budget for the elderly, will automatically climb to the higher care categories, and that way also receive a higher care budget.
This is all part of an automated process, meaning they do not have to do anything themselves. Around 20,000 residents will immediately receive more budget.
