Exploding Care Costs: It’s a Matter We All Need to Care About

M People tend to put off unpleasant things or simply ignore them. There is only so much we can do about this: our brains are strongly geared towards avoiding unpleasant feelings. Nursing is such an uncomfortable feeling. We find it existentially threatening because it confronts us with our own decline.

Regardless, it is a topic that is far away for most people. Our brains are not good at realistically imagining future situations and needs – and the further away they are in the future, the more difficult it is for us. Only: care is one of the biggest socio-political problems our time. One that we cannot simply ignore. This is currently made clear by an evaluation by the Association of Substitute Insurance Funds Care in a home has become more expensive again. For the first year in a facility, those in need of care pay a nationwide average of 3,245 euros per month. 261 euros more than last year.

Nursing care insurance only covers a portion of these costs. The personal contribution nationwide is 1,982 euros. This exceeds both the average pension paid out in Germany and the fictitious pension of around 1,800 euros, which is paid out after 45 years of contributions based on an average salary. That raises the question of who can pay for it. Will only the very wealthy be able to afford to stay in a nursing home in the future?

The social impact of high care costs is already immense today; among other things, it is also a factor for ongoing gender injustice. Due to the high costs, care is pushed into the private sphere; it is usually women who provide care. The Costs go to the savings of the middle class and thus contribute to further inequality in wealth distribution. Of course, politicians cannot score points with this, so care is not a priority on the political agenda. But care must become a big issue – politically and privately. Because something has to happen.