HCCI asks all parties to sign the Home Care Promise and clear waiting list for home care

Wednesday 29 January 2020: Home and Community Care Ireland (HCCI) today made its election priorities public with the publication of the Home Care Promise.  HCCI is asking each Dáil candidate running in Election 2020 to commit, if elected, to:

• Increase funding to provide 6M new home care hours by 2022 to meet rising demand and clear the current waiting list
• Commit to legislating for a statutory entitlement to home care in 2021
• Make home care work a protected and licensed profession to increase career opportunities for hard-working carers
• Back the phased creation of a quality ratings system for all home care providers, including the HSE’s service, to help the public make more informed choices
• Acknowledge the vital contribution of private home care providers
• Include Health Care Assistants on the Critical Skills List to help alleviate the recruitment crisis

More than 1,000 copies of the Promise card have been distributed across the country to HCCI’s 80 member companies.   HCCI members will be presenting the Home Care Promise to Dáil candidates across Ireland in the final 10 days of the Election 2020 campaign.

Commenting on HCCI’s Home Care Promise, Joseph Musgrave (Chief Executive, HCCI) said:

Every 15 minutes, someone in Ireland turns 65.  Every 30 minutes, someone turns 80.  It is a positive thing that more of us are living longer, and healthier lives, than ever before.

“But Ireland’s home care service is under enormous pressure.  We have over 7,200 people on a waiting list for care, an increase of 125% since 2016.  Funding has gone up by 53% in that time, which hasn’t been enough to keep pace with demand.

“Therefore, we are asking all Dáil candidates to sign up to the Home Care Promise.  The 80 companies HCCI represents, the 20,000 people they care for, and thousands of Irish families who are looking for care deserve no less from our politicians.