The State is not sharing the responsibility for caring for the disabled and the elderly and is failing to recognise the value of work carried out by 150,000 carers, the Equality Authority claimed today.
In a report published today, the authority warned that carers are under strain and suffering from a sense of "isolation".
Despite a 17 per cent rise in the carer's allowance, the Implementing Equality for Carerssaid there were inadequate income supports.
It recommended that State payments should be reflective of the value carers' work as well as the employment they may be missing.
Niall Crowley, chief executive of the Equality Authority, said: "The indications are that caring can be bad for your income levels, it can be bad for your social participation and it can be bad for your health and for your family relations".
Speaking the launch of the report the Minister for Social Affairs, Séamus Brennan, recognised the financial value of carers to the State.
"It is very expensive for someone to go into hospital, or into a nursing home, or into some kind of a home. It is much better financially, socially and personally, in many ways much more dignified if people can stay at home," he said.
Mr Brennan outlined full details of the increased benefits and supports for carers announced in the Budget. The Carers Allowance for under-66s increased to €180 per week with an extra €20 for over-66s.
Other improvements include:
- increase in Respite Care Grant to €1,200
- increase in hours that can be worked while claiming carer's payments for 10 to 15 hours
- increase in income disregards for means testing from €290 for a single person and €580 for a couple
Mr Brennan said family and informal care was the basis of a long-term policy and that a needs-assessment process incorporating the development of respite services and additional training for carers, was being implemented.
"These are but the first steps in achieving our vision of a co-ordinated, comprehensive, accessible and sustainable system of delivering services and supports in the community to people who need care and their carers," Mr Brennan said.
The chairman of the Carers Association Frank Goodwin said the Budget measures would still leave 25,000 full-time and 100,000 part-time family carers neglected.He said carers were shouldering almost the entire financial burden and noted their allowance is little more than unemployment payments "even though they [carers] are on call 24-hours a day".
Care Alliance Ireland (CAI) welcomed the Equality Authority report saying it highlighted the need for the State to give greater assistance to Ireland's 150,000 carers.
National Development Officer Liam O'Sullivan, said the report shows the need for home care services to be provided as a right. He said it was unacceptable that geographical location or "presence on a hospital trolley" can influence whether the service is provided.
Additional reporting PA