§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the current average weekly cost of caring for an elderly person in (a) a local authority home and (b) in an acute bed in a hospital ward in the period 1980–81.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergFigures derived from costing returns submitted by health authorities in England for the year ended 31 March 1981 indicate that the average weekly cost of treating a patient in an acute hospital with more than 300 beds was about £506. The average for all acute hospitals was approximately £412. These costs do not necessarily represent the cost of treating elderly patients in acute hospitals, which is not separately identifiable. The average weekly cost of treating an elderly person in a geriatric hospital in 1980–81 was about £200. The average weekly cost of maintaining a resident is a local authority home for the elderly in the same year was £77.
These figures exclude capital costs and certain administrative costs not separately identified, and take no account of income from statutory charges. The figure for a local authority home for the elderly is based on information taken from "Personal Social Services Statistics 1980–81 Actuals" published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.