“This could have happened in 2018 already, but it did not!” said Janez Sušnik, President of Slovenian Federation of Pensioners’ Associations (Zveza društev upokojencev Slovenije – ZDUS), in a video published by Slovenian Democratic Party (Slovenska demokratska stranka – SDS). His statement refers to E-care, which the current government of Robert Golob wants to abolish, which means that it would consequently deny help to all elderly people who need help at home at some point, which is why the SDS party is calling on everyone to vote AGAINST the implementation of the harmful changes to the Long-Term Care Act in the upcoming referendum.
After more than 20 years of attempts and more than 120 different versions of proposals made during Janez Janša’s government’s term, the Long-Term Care Act was finally adopted at the end of 2021, but now the Golob government wants to abolish it. The next strategic challenge facing all countries is the issue of demographic trends, and as the SDS party believes that long-term care must remain a priority for every government, they invite everyone to vote AGAINST the harmful changes to the Long-Term Care Act that Robert Golob’s coalition wants to introduce, in the upcoming referendum.
“Finally, our long-standing wish and need for older people to be able to call for help when they fall or have an accident in their homes is about to come true. This is something they could not actually do until now if something like that happened to them, as they could not get to their phone in their helpless state, so things should become much easier now. This is a new development for our country, but it has been known abroad for a long time, it could have been implemented in 2018 already, but it was not – and now, it finally will be!” Janez Sušnik, President of the Slovenian Federation of Pensioners’ Associations, pointed out in a video that was recently published by the SDS party on Twitter.
Since these are important issues that require a broader consensus, related to the care of adults who, because of illness, old age, injury or disability, are no longer able to care for themselves independently, they invite everyone to take part in the referendum to be held on Sunday, the 27th of November 2022. These are important questions that have a direct impact on the functioning of our society, as well as concrete interventions in the situation and daily lives of many people.
MPs from the SDS parliamentary group did everything in their power to prevent the harmful consequences of the decisions of the Robert Golob coalition
The Slovenian Democratic Party opposes the bill on amendments and additions to the Long-Term Care Act because it abolishes the solutions that regulate the field of long-term care by ensuring conditions for accessible, high-quality and safe treatment of adults who, due to illness, age, injury or disability, are no longer able to independently take care of themselves. The Long-Term Care Act gives all citizens the hope that they will not be left alone and without healthcare and assistance in old age. It is a systemic law that will ensure that every elderly person can spend their last years on Earth without unnecessary hardship and deprivation.
The SDS party calls on everyone to vote AGAINST in the legislative referendum, as the bill on amendments and additions to the Long-Term Care Act abolishes:
- the setting up of a single entry point in order to centralise information on health, social care and long-term care as much as possible and make procedures as simple as possible for the beneficiaries;
- the introduction of a single assessment of eligibility, with the intention of standardising the way in which assessments are carried out and, as a result, ensuring that beneficiaries with comparable needs have access to comparable benefits;
- the introduction of new services which would ensure that beneficiaries in all settings, both at home and in institutions, can access comparable services, and that the provision of services to promote and maintain independence, as well as e-care services would also be ensured;
- the establishment of effective quality and safety control of long-term care services and a higher share of public co-financing of long-term case entitlements, which means that individuals would pay less for the services they need, and the reduction of the financial burden on local authorities is also planned;
- the improvement of planning, management and assurance of the quality, safety and efficiency of long-term care as a public service;
- the provision of long-term care in both institutional and community-based settings;
- the possibility for the beneficiary, with appropriate support, to remain in his or her home environment for as long as possible.
Caring for the elderly is not only our duty but also an expression of social development, responsibility and empathy, the party believes, adding that it is a reflection of respect for the people who were responsible for the development of this country, who have worked and built Slovenia.
Tanja Brkić
