EIGHTY PRIVATE Retirement Homes have given the Labour Ministry until Monday to increase their patient fees by almost £200.
Failure to satisfy their demands could result in the eviction of several thousand elderly patients.
But Labour Minister Antonis Vassiliou made it clear he would not be blackmailed and that the ministry was prepared to deal with any eventuality.
Retirement Home Owners Association president Andreas Droushiotis said the minister’s attitude and refusal to discuss demands that concerned the care of 3,000 elderly was provocative.
He claimed that to care for, house and feed a single elderly patient was far more costly than the money provided by the social welfare services and that from £371 per patient per month, the owners were asking for at least £550 per patient per month.
“If this is not satisfied by Monday each retirement home will charge their elderly, who are paid for by the social welfare services, £20 per day,” he said.
Droushiotis said another problem the businesses faced were nursing staff shortages. He said although the Interior Ministry allowed the retirement homes to hire third country nationals, the Labour Ministry would not hear of it. Instead, he said, they were expected to hire European citizens. He said Bulgarians, Romanians and Polish workers rarely lasted 24 hours working in the homes.
“Some hear it’s an retirement home and don’t even come at all,” Droushiotis said.
He said if the Labour Ministry did not satisfy their demands they would take their grievances to local and European courts and report the contract they kept with the social welfare services’ district offices.
But Vassiliou said the owners the home owners could do as they pleased.
“It’s their right if they want this ultimatum to stand,” he said.
Asked what would happen where elderly were evicted from the homes, he said: “I’d like to believe this will not happen. If something like this does happen though, as a ministry we have taken measures.”
The minister refused to comment further on the issue saying he would not discuss problems through the media.
“I don’t send messages or receive messages,” adding that negotiations were “only done at the table”.
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