Deadline set to recover nursing home care costs; Over pounds 18m repaid to families.

Byline: TOM BODDEN

A DEADLINE has been imposed in Wales for patients or families to make claims for the repayment of thousands of pounds in wrongly charged care home fees.

The Welsh Assembly Government announced that its scheme to reimburse the fees for nursing care prior to April 2003 will end on December 4, 2009.

The Court of Appeal ruled in 1999 that if a patient's main need is for healthcare in a nursing home, then the NHS should pay for the full cost.

Marjorie

Lawyers, who acted for the family of an Anglesey woman to recover pounds 165,000 in nursing home fees, are working on a further 750 cases in Wales and England.

Marjorie Eyton-Jones from Benllech, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease, wrongly paid the charges to three care homes between 1998-2005.

Her relatives were forced to sell her home to fund the nursing fees until her death at the age of 88 in May, 2007.

A repayment scheme was established after the Health Ombudsman advised Local Health Boards to review cases from April 1996.

The scheme managed by Powys Local Health Board has repaid over pounds 18m pounds to more than 500 Welsh families since 2004.

Eyton-Jones Lisa Morgan, a solicitor at Cardiff-based Hugh James, said that thousands of people across Wales had been wrongly charged.

Ms Morgan, who acted for Mrs Eyton-Jones, said: "It is important that people are aware of this new deadline. This is their last chance to ask the Local Health Board for a review of care home fees paid before April 2003."

Age Concern estimates 100,000 people in England and Wales should receive full NHS funding. There are over 12,000 people in nursing homes across Wales.

If a patient is eligible for NHS Continuing Healthcare, they do not make any contribution towards fees.

If not assessed as eligible for NHS Continuing Health care, a person with capital over pounds 22,000 has to pay for all the care fees. The average weekly cost per person is pounds 500.

The Assembly Government said special review panels had operated to advise on repayments of charges between April 1996 and March 2003.

"The WAG now intends to wind up these arrangements. Individuals who believe that they may have been entitled to continuing NHS healthcare during this period have until 4 December 2009 to submit a claim. Claims relating to later periods are not affected by this cut off."

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Marjorie Eyton-Jones