In a new working paper we use new data to reconfirm the distinction between age and death costs, and importantly to highlight differences in average end of life costs between individuals with different characteristics.
Much of lifetime healthcare spending is concentrated at the end of life. This paper uses survey data linked to administrative hospital and mortality records to examine how the pattern of end-of-life hospital inpatient spending varies across different groups within a large public hospital system in England.
Funding for adult social care is currently a hot topic. The number of older individuals is forecast to increase sharply over the next two decades. However, the extent to which this places pressure on social care budgets could potentially be offset by reductions in the needs of older people over time, and in the increased availability of informal care due to the growing prevalence of partners at older ages. New evidence published today suggests that although there is some evidence of reduced needs across successive birth cohorts, this will do little to offset the increased demand for formal care arising from demographic pressures.
