AEIP published its input to the European Commission’s call for evidence on the European care strategy

On 29 March 2022, AEIP published its input to the European Commission’s call for evidence on the European care strategy accompanied by a proposal for a Council Recommendation on Long-term care and on the revision of the Barcelona targets on early childhood education and care.

AEIP strongly supports the European Commission’s (EC) goals for the EU Care Strategy and it believes that this is an opportunity to foster the provision of long-term care (LTC) and informal care.

AEIP calls the EC to promote the paritarian model across the EU as basis for sustainable and inclusive social protection. Paritarian institutions can help in implementing policy solutions in the delivery of social protection and they are key for the development of new approaches in the provision of adequate occupational healthcare and long-term care (LTC) benefits as well as in the management of work-life balance for workers.

 

On healthcare and LTC, the EC should better target its Country Specific Recommendations within the European Semester and help governments to consider the resources allocated in this branch as a valuable investment rather than an economic burden.

 

AEIP believes that an EU policy framework on LTC should consider not only patients’ clinical profile but also the family, economic and environmental context. It should also encourage stakeholders to adopt an integrated approach which would build on the synergies between social and healthcare services providers, operating both in the private and public domain.

 

More specifically, AEIP calls on the EC:

• To set up a permanent group at EU level on LTC

The setting up of a permanent group (an institutionalized platform or a steering group) at EU level on LTC would increase the evidence about LTC practices within the EU. The EC should also support EU countries in developing minimum quality requirements for LTC providers to facilitate national authorities in services provision’s monitoring.

 

• For the development of comparable data and EU indicators

AEIP calls for the development of comparable data and EU indicators on LTC to support Member States in ensuring evidenced-based policies and to better target EC’s country specific recommendations within the European Semester.

 

• For minimum quality requirements for LTC providers

The development of minimum quality requirements for LTC providers would push policymakers to better monitor the provision of LTC services. This would contribute to bring decisionmakers’ attention on the fact that almost 80% of LTC in Europe is provided by informal carers. This situation negatively affects both the quality of the service that is provided to the person in need and informal carers’ personal and professional lives.

 

• For strengthening of dependency insurance coverage

The loss of autonomy, its management and occupational aspects affects all ages through disability, illness or aging and it is mainly addressed through home support provided by caregivers. This solution can be expensive and it is often not completely covered by public funds being financed by insurances.

 

• To foster its commitment started with the EU Work-life Balance Directive to improve the social and fiscal framework in support of informal carer

To address the risks entailed by the provision of LTC by informal carers, AEIP calls the EC to foster its commitment in reforming the social and fiscal framework in their support through the promotion of best practices implemented at member states level.

 

• For workplace adaptation and working conditions flexibility

AEIP believes that the EU, via its occupational safety, health, social inclusion, and equal treatment policies, could play an important role in addressing workplace adaptation and flexible working conditions.

 

• For investing in prevention

Member States should create more awareness on the repercussions that ageing has on people’s lives, labour markets and institutions of social protection.

 

• On national policy makers to make a better use of vocational rehabilitation services

At national level, policy makers should make a better use of vocational rehabilitation services. The EC should further promote human and economic resources into these services through the European Semester.

 

The full AEIP’s input is available here.