Policies for Later-Life Families in a Comparative European Perspective

Abstract

In this chapter, we consider cross-national differences in policies for later-life families in Europe, focusing on state support freeing family members from caring responsibilities or enabling them to care. These policies come under the umbrella of long-term care (LTC), help required by persons with a reduced degree of functional capacity for an extended period of time. Publicly funded LTC includes “in-kind” services, where care is provided by professionals at home or in an institution, and “cash benefits” which can be used to purchase professional care or which can be paid to informal caregivers as income support. Apart from long-term care for dependents themselves, there are policies supporting family members in their caregiving tasks: “cash for care” (financial compensation for helping those with impairments), “care leaves” (the right to be absent from work in order to care), and “care credits” (time spent on caring that is credited towards a basic pension).

Inequalities in Resilience: Research report on the capacity of policies to attenuate the link between risks and poor outcomes

“…The expenditure data presented above only provide a broad assessment of the different levels of investment governments are making with respect to financing long-term care, and hide differences in approaches. Dykstra and Djundeva (2020) differentiate between long-term care provision in the form of residential care and in the form of home care, with the warning that without adequate services the latter becomes "staying put" rather than "ageing in place" (cf. Boldy et al, 2011).…”

“…Two further trends in policies for long-term care were described, that both give rise to a rise in dualization in long-term case, with only those who have more resources better situated to purchase quality care (Dykstra & Djundeva, 2020). The first is a trend of re-familisation, in which responsibilities for care (in particular for elderly) are being shifted away from the state to the family (Ranci & Pavolini, 2013).…”

Attitudes Towards Filial Responsibility in 11 European Countries

“…Second, we examined the welfare state's role in the sustenance and care of older adults. Prior research has demonstrated that the process of modernisation is considered differently across various countries when developing welfare state systems (Dykstra and Djundeva 2020;Frericks and Höppner 2018;Ranci and Pavolini 2015). In numerous countries, welfare systems remain largely family-centric, operating under the assumption that younger generations (typically women) bear the ultimate responsibility for caring for their parents.…”

Living arrangements in later life

“…In 2017, this figure ranged from two per 1000 in Greece to 83 per 1000 in Luxembourg. An overview of the changes in the number of beds in these facilities between 2005 and 2017 in 23 European countries reported a decrease in the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, and United Kingdom; an increase in Estonia, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Slovakia, and Spain; and little change in Belgium, Denmark, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, and Slovenia (Dykstra and Djundeva 2020). The overall trend was one of 'limited convergence' (Ranci and Pavolini 2013, p. 312): the more generous welfare regimes retrenched their provisions, while the less generous welfare regimes expanded theirs.…”