Retirement Home Beacon
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Who pays for care — three systems compared

Who pays for long-term care, and under what test, is not the same question everywhere. This table names, for three jurisdictions this hub already sources, the mechanism that decides whether the state or the individual pays, and what happens to a means-tested benefit after it has been paid — each row backed by a single source verified against a retrieved document. Where the cited source does not establish a cell, the cell says so.

How this is compiled

mechanism
Country How it's decidedPublic-help testRecovered later? Official source
GB United Kingdom A council financial assessment (means test) decides whether the council contributes — it looks at savings, income and property, and the more you have the more you pay yourself In England, the council generally helps to pay for care costs if savings are under £23,250 (the upper capital limit) Not a recovery in the French sense, but the council can refuse help if it judges wealth was deliberately reduced before the assessment nhs.uk ↗
FR France L'aide sociale à l'hébergement (ASH), a departmental benefit, advances the difference between the care-home bill and what the resident (and, where applicable, their obligés alimentaires) can pay Available to people whose resources are lower than the cost of accommodation in the establishment Yes — ASH amounts paid are recoverable from the beneficiary, during their life or from their estate, unlike the APA pour-les-personnes-agees.gouv.fr ↗
US United States Medicare explicitly does not pay for long-term (custodial) care — it is distinct from the skilled nursing facility care Medicare does cover for a limited period; Medicaid or private long-term care insurance are the named alternatives Not established by the cited source — Medicaid eligibility is state-specific and not detailed on this page Not established by the cited source medicare.gov ↗
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Sources

What this page is based on — every source is verified and links out so you can check it yourself.

  1. Financial assessment (means test) for social care - Social care and support guide - NHSverified · 2026-08-04 · agent:verification
  2. L'aide sociale à l'hébergement (ASH) en établissement | Pour les personnes âgéesverified · 2026-08-04 · agent:verification
  3. Long-term care coverage - Medicare.govverified · 2026-08-04 · agent:verification