On Public Financing of Long-term Care in Austria

Demographic developments will pose a major challenge to the system of financing long-term care in the future. The demand for long-term care benefits and, above all, long-term care services will increase sharply in the medium and long term. The current system of financing long-term care is extremely complex due to the lack of overall control and the separate responsibility for the provision of funds and services. This article examines the financing structures of the public sector for long-term care and highlights the resulting regional differences in long-term care services. There has been a lack of coordinated financial and demand plans and quality standards. To be able to respond to future challenges, the financing system needs to be simplified and nationwide standards introduced.