In January 1995, the government of Helmut Kohl introduced the Social Law XI 1, the German long term care insurance.
It is an independent part of the social security in Germany, in the Sozialgesetzbuch and provides financial provision for the risk of care necessity.
This fifth pillar is financed by the care fund, which was built for all the individual health insurance policies.
Old and sick people are no longer dependent on social security if in need of care.
[2] The care need people receive the benefits of insurance cover in three stages.
The decision for the classification in the care insurance is made with substantial consideration of the nursing report.
In special hardship cases, the care fund can cover operations with a total value of up to €1,918.
The cash benefits are only for the cost of care and social support determined the home.
This means that depending on the level of care people get a fixed amount that is paid by the insurance as support, regardless of how high the prices for such services, such as by inflation, should rise over the years.
[7] The care insurance is very complex so that few citizens have the necessary information to apply for the claim properly.
This creates a false impression of fitness and subsequently an incorrect (less comprehensive) classification of those people.
[8] There are many ways to care for family members or to give assistance: the home emergency, the short-term and day care, the assisted living, the help for housekeeping, the meals being delivered to the house, the driving and escort services, and the nursing homes.
Because this issue is so complex, patients often do not receive assistance and private insurance for nursing care.
[9] Furthermore, important factors in determining the time required for care are not taken into account in general.
In contrast, there is neither support in social areas of life nor help to manage crises and isolation nor dealing with dying and death.
Equally nursing care cases of shorter duration than half a year get no payments from the original insurance.
[12] To apply for this the concerned person must have a prior insurance of about five years in a care fund.
[14] Twelve years after its introduction, long-term care was reformed for the first time in 2008.
For people without children, already at least 23, the nursing care rate rise up to 2.2% of the gross salary.
Secondly, a support for supervised living arrangements and bases for care close to home.
The referred amount of up to €2,400 is intended for people with higher overall support costs in relation to care needs.
For these people, additional support staff is deployed, financed by the care funds.
Benefits for day and night care were improved, higher subsidies were offered, and performances got index-linked.
In addition, care funds had a shortened review period so they must provide results within five weeks to the submitted application.
For a hospital stay, the review period has to occur by the medical service of health insurance within a week.
These people are paid in the future during their leisure as contributions to statutory pension insurance.
It also specifies that the health care insurance pays a settlement amount of €3,072 if the rehabilitation can be provided in time.