Social benefits in LUP: protests over new financial regulations!

Social benefits in LUP: protests over new financial regulations!

Important changes are coming in the Ludwigslust-Parchim district (LUP) that affect social services. As nordkurier.de reports, there is a need for action due to significant additional costs due to collectively agreed salary adjustments and the planned changes to the Budget Accompanying Act. The law aims to document the use of tax money more clearly and to make the social sector more efficient.

A particularly controversial topic is the planned change in support for people with disabilities. According to the new regulations, support should no longer be granted individually, but rather according to a catalog of classified disabilities. This method is met with resistance from disability associations and social institutions, who argue that diagnoses often do not reflect individual support needs.

Financial challenges

Integration assistance, which enables people with disabilities to participate in social life, remains a mandatory municipal task. The aid is applied for and paid out to the district, although refinancing by the state, the federal government or the health and nursing care insurance companies is also possible. But rising care costs and the aging population are putting additional pressure on budgets. Space for voluntary services, such as support for advice centers, could become more limited due to these financial burdens.

The care rate negotiations between the providers and the health insurance companies have not yet been concluded, and experts expect that the costs for those in need of care will continue to rise. This could force the district to prepare for a tight fiscal situation, as the saying goes, “there’s something going on.”

Social assistance at a glance

But what does this actually mean for the citizens of the district? In order to better understand social assistance, it is worth taking a look at the legal basis, as laid down in the Twelfth Book of the Social Security Code (SGB XII). This regulates benefits for various personal situations and circumstances, in particular assistance with living expenses and basic security in old age or in the event of reduced earning capacity. People who need financial help and are not able to work are entitled to this support.

People who are able to work can apply for citizen's benefit if they are in need. This came into force on January 1, 2023 and replaces the previous basic security for job seekers. In addition, SGB

Also important is care assistance, which enables people in need of care to receive support if the costs are not fully covered by long-term care insurance. Even people who were previously self-financing can apply for support in financial hardship. In a narrower sense, SGB XII also helps people in particular social difficulties, for example through personal care and assistance with integration into society.

There may be a small hope for the LUP district through planned subsidies in the budget resolution, which will be discussed in the upcoming district council in December. Even if LUP is one of the financially strong districts in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the prospects of tight budgets due to rising care costs and necessary structural adjustments should not be underestimated.