Disability benefits and paying for care

Abstract

The Attendance Allowance (AA) and the Disability Living Allowance care component (DLAc) are paid to elderly and/or disabled people who need help with activities of daily living Together, these benefits cost £9.2 billion per year

Since the need for care is the main criterion entitling people to claim, one important question is whether they receive (enough) care. The Wanless review recommended integrating support for care costs from these disability benefits into the care system to improve targeting of resources.

This paper discusses the impact of AA/DLAc on the well-being of disabled adults, and assesses the likely advantages, and disadvantages, of a possible reallocation of resources