The Generalitat commits to paying economic dependency aid within two and a half months

BarcelonaIn the first three months of this year alone, 2,866 people have died waiting for a dependency benefit in Catalonia. They have died in what is known as limbo, the period between when the application is submitted and the administration assesses, recognizes the degree, and grants the corresponding aid through the individual care plan (PIA). There are 128,000 Catalans in this process (the vast majority of whom are elderly people), who have to wait up to 397 days (13 months) on average due to delays in their file, more than double the 180 days set as a maximum by the state dependency law.

It is in this limbo where the Generalitat will focus its efforts over the next two years to “unblock” the first “tap” that those who wish to benefit from the law encounter. The plan, which President Salvador Illa announced this Sunday at the Government's working days at Món Sant Benet, commits to reducing the wait to have the PIA in just 60 days and another 15 days to start receiving the economic benefit to which one is entitled.

The program only guarantees

economic aid for caregivers

, but not the allocation of services that are part of the law's catalog, such as a place in a day center, a nursing home, home care, or a personal assistant. From Social Rights, they downplay it, assuring that 80% of users request economic aid, but this is not the case among the most dependent. Delays in obtaining one of these aids can drag on for years, a situation that impacts not only the quality of care for the beneficiary but also their families, who often have to bear the economic and emotional costs of constant care.

A single act

Time savings will be achieved by simplifying procedures, as the assessment of the dependency degree and the PIA will be carried out in a single visit to the applicant, meaning that by the end of the examination, the beneficiary will know the amount of the benefit they are entitled to. Currently, this process takes too long because there is first an evaluation by basic municipal social services and then the allocation of aid by technicians from the Department of Social Rights.

The Care Plan is part of the trend towards greater coordination between the services of the Departments of Social Rights and Health, which will culminate in the creation of a single point of contact contemplated in the future Agency for Integrated Social and Health Care of Catalonia. In fact, primary care knows almost all dependent people who end up applying for aid, so "clinical criteria" will gain relevance in this new model, which those responsible for both ministries affirm represents a "paradigm shift" and places Catalonia at the forefront of dependency management.

economic and emotional costs of constant careIn this technological context, the Generalitat points out that they have already detected up to 18,200 potential cases of people on waiting lists who, based on medical reports, will be identified with profiles that fit the criteria for grade III, the maximum on the dependency scale. These are elderly people, but also psychiatric patients or children with very specific needs. From May onwards, this group will be prioritized, for whom an "express PIA" will be made, and before the evaluation they will be able to receive a benefit of 200 euros, the minimum established by law. Once the final resolution is obtained, the total amount corresponding to them will be paid. However, should they request a place in a residence or another service, they will have to remain on the specific list for each center, but those responsible for Social Rights affirm that personal situations will be alleviated, in many cases at the end of life. It is the same treatment as that received by patients with ALS, for whom a different pathway has been created through the creation of grade III+ dependency.

receive ALS patients, for whom a different pathway has been created by establishing grade III+ dependency.

Two decades of service

The implementation of the dependency law twenty years ago was an important step towards universalizing care for dependent people, although unlike education or healthcare, the user has to contribute a co-payment to use it. However, the initiative was already born with a deficit, and families criticize that both the services and the criteria for evaluation are designed primarily for the elderly, neglecting children who need care. The Generalitat admits that the current system has not adapted to the constant increase in new users and more dependent individuals (double in ten years), nor have the management systems been updated, nor has there been an increase in professionals.

The forecast is that this Tuesday the Government will approve the decree of urgent measures to implement the Care Plan. It will involve an initial investment of 25 million euros to hire 200 professionals to streamline the internal machinery of the Department of Social Rights, which is responsible for PIAs and increasing degree evaluation services, which will be able to conduct 25,000 extra visits to reduce waiting lists. Without a budget for this year, the committed allocation will come from the credit supplement of 9,100 million euros with which the salary increase for teachers also has to be paid.