Marie Curie pleased the Labour Party has heard our message on health and social care

Andy Burnham MP has today outlined the Labour Party’s commitment to whole-person care. This included a pledge to create a single budget for health and social care, and to introduce free personal care for terminally ill people in the last three months of life. 

Imelda Redmond CBE, Policy & Public Affairs Director at Marie Curie said:
 “We welcome the Labour Party’s approach to whole-person care. The current divide between health and social care does not make sense to people and their families who only want access to the care, support and treatment they need to live well. They do not want to fight the bureaucracy of the system.

“Marie Curie is a provider of care, a leader in research and an advocate on behalf of terminally ill people and their families. We see first-hand how the current divides within the system let people down, especially as they approach the end of their lives. Too often terminally ill people find themselves stuck in hospital with no real need to be there, waiting weeks for the system to put in place the social care they need in order to spend their last days and weeks at home with their families.

“Whichever party or parties form the next Government, it is vital that they remove the barriers which prevent people getting the care they want at the end of life.

“For this reason, we are pleased that the Labour Party has heard our message on removing the delays and obstacles for terminally ill people applying for social care. Marie Curie welcomes its commitment to providing NHS personal care for free, in people’s own homes when they are in the last three months of life. For many thousands of people this will mean that they can spend the remaining time with their loved ones in the place they feel most comfortable. This will also free up thousands of NHS bed days, which can be used to make sure that people with need for curative treatment get it faster and get on with their lives sooner.”