Defenseless dependents

The unprecedented 65 billion euros in spending cuts announced on Wednesday by Popular Party Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, combined with the ongoing austerity measures, will have a profoundly negative impact on the so-called Dependency Act, a program introduced by the previous Socialist Party administration in 2006 to help families and individuals looking after elderly and infirm relatives.

According to a number of regional governments, which are responsible for funding the program, the central government has decided to reduce the payment to family carers by 15 percent and will no longer pay their Social Security contribution, as well as allowing local authorities to wait up to two years before processing applications for help.

In addition, any payment agreed will not be backdated. As a result, many families will see their loved ones die during the two-year waiting period for assistance to be provided, unable to access resources or care facilities.

The government says the measures will save the relatively modest amount of 285 million euros, but will have a huge impact on low-income families already in difficulties. The cuts in payments to carers, the majority of whom are women, and an end to state contributions to their Social Security accounts would not be so dramatic if the elderly and infirm had an alternative source of care. Sadly, this is not the case. The reason that so many families have to take care of dependent relatives is because of the shocking lack of places made available in care homes for them.

The Dependency Act was introduced just before the Spanish economy was hit by the global financial crisis and the repercussions of the collapse of a decade-long property boom that saw Spain's banks push the country into debt. Socialist Party Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero also included the fledgling program in the spending cuts his government introduced, and his successor has continued to try to make savings by making further drastic cuts to the state budget.

Given the worsening state of Spain's economy, there is a real risk that the Dependency Act will never be implemented, and simply left to die from lack of funding.

It held the promise of providing major benefits to a significant number of families, as well as creating jobs in the care sector. It may not have fulfilled its objectives, but it is nevertheless a step forward. The government and the regional administrations should have considered their actions more carefully before making such an unpopular decision.

They will now have to make the best of a deficient system, and show that it is possible to improve services without increasing budgets, as has been shown in Castilla y León, a region run by the Popular Party, which by optimizing resources and sharing information has improved the delivery of services, while reducing waiting lists for hospital treatment, and generally making a positive contribution to people's welfare.