"Want to Receive Care at Home" Government Increases Home Care Benefits under Long-Term Care Insurance for the Elderly

The government will raise the monthly limit for home care benefits for long-term care recipients to the level of facility residents, allowing the elderly to receive care while continuing to live in their own homes.

On the 17th, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced the "3rd Long-Term Care Basic Plan (2023?2027)" through the Long-Term Care Committee, which includes this content. The Elderly Long-Term Care Insurance is a social insurance system implemented since July 2008 to support elderly people who have difficulty performing daily activities independently. It is divided into facility benefits, which provide care services at nursing homes, and home care benefits, which are delivered through visits. The number of recipients has increased nearly fivefold from 210,000 at the system's inception to 1.02 million currently.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare predicts that the number of long-term care recipients will increase to 1.45 million by 2027 due to aging. The 3rd Basic Plan aims to strengthen long-term care services so that sufficient and diverse care can be received where the elderly live and to enhance the sustainability of the system.

First, for elderly people who wish to receive care while living in their own homes, the Ministry will gradually raise the monthly limit for severe (grades 1 and 2) recipients to the level of facility residents by 2027. As of this year, the monthly limit for grade 1 recipients is KRW 1,885,000 for home care benefits and KRW 2,452,500 for facility benefits. This means aligning the two benefit levels equally.

The quality of long-term care infrastructure will also be improved. Public and private nursing facilities will be expanded, focusing on areas with supply shortages. The number of public elderly nursing facilities will be gradually increased by 53 locations, and improvements to facility entry systems will be considered for some areas with insufficient supply, such as urban centers. The Ministry will promote the development of a "unit care model" that provides 1- or 2-person rooms so that elderly residents can live in an environment similar to their homes within nursing facilities. From 2026 onward, all new facilities will be required to adopt the unit model.

Education, monitoring, and on-site investigations related to elder abuse will also be strengthened. To improve the treatment of long-term care workers, support such as allowances based on vulnerable areas and work intensity will be provided. The Ministry will broadly review the utilization of foreign workers residing in Korea and substitute workforce support projects through consultations with related ministries.

In addition to the regular evaluations conducted every three years for all long-term care institutions, the Ministry plans to strengthen post-evaluation management. Improvements to the overall evaluation system, including the introduction of preliminary evaluations for newly established institutions, will also be pursued.

Meanwhile, concerns about the sustainability of long-term care insurance have arisen due to the rapid aging of the population. In response, the Ministry plans to appropriately manage the increasing number of long-term care recipients and strengthen pre- and post-management of benefits to ensure proper service use. Furthermore, considering the speed of aging, public burden, and the need for system improvements comprehensively, the Ministry will determine an appropriate insurance premium rate, secure statutory government subsidies (20% of insurance premium revenue), and broadly explore additional funding sources.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.