Struggling hospices fear demand for beds will grow as dying patients can’t afford to heat homes
The cost of living crisis could force dying patients to move into hospice beds as they can no longer afford to heat their homes, it is claimed.
The stark warning comes as the care sector faces soaring energy bills of its own, with the industry predicting a huge hike in costs next year.
Speaking about the impact the cost of living crisis is having on patients, Paul Marriot, Chief Executive of North East hospice St Cuthbert’s, said: “Here in the North East, for example, many of our patients are already on low incomes and the fact that they are ill increases their costs. The key thing is that they are in a time in life when they’ve got less choice around what they do about [costs]. So it’s not an opportunity for them to switch off the heating, it’s not an option for them, just to wear more clothes, it’s not an option for them to see it out until the spring, because they may not be here in the spring."
Source: The Independent, 17 October 2022