[The care insurance and the patients of at home care]

Thirty-one patients used the at-home nursing care service provided by our hospital. However, they were also taken care of by old family members, mostly 60 years old or more, thus only 23.8% of the maximum Care Insurance was used. The average insurance, for the service is 6,312 yen, which does not increase according to the level of care the patient required. Especially, the expenses regarding the home bathing service, which is the most used, have doubled since the Care Insurance started. The family of most patients may not be able to pay more than 10,000 yen every month for the care of old and handicapped people. The increased expenses can become an obstacle regarding the promotion of at-home care.