Schwerin (dpa/mv) – The associations for the care of people in need in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania are to receive more money from next year in order to be able to implement the guardianship and care law newly regulated by the federal government. The state subsidy is to increase from the previous 150,000 euros to 200,000 euros, as the Ministry of Social Affairs announced on Wednesday. From 2024 onwards, the amount is to increase by 2.3 percent annually to compensate for inflation.
For the opposition, the promised money is far too little. After an expert hearing in the state parliament on Wednesday, the Greens, for example, demanded a significant surcharge. MV subsidizes the care associations with just 124.30 euros per 1000 inhabitants, according to deputy parliamentary group leader Anne Shepley. In Rhineland-Palatinate it was around 715 euros in 2016.
The FDP is also of the opinion that the state government must follow suit. Group leader René Domke explained that the planned funding for the 35 clubs recognized in the country was a sign of inadequacy. No other federal state operates with such small funds. The legal policy spokesman for the AfD parliamentary group, Horst Förster, said that the planned fixed amount of 200,000 euros for all care associations is not enough in view of the tasks that have grown with the reform of the care law. A spokesman for the Ministry of Social Affairs assured that it would be checked whether additional needs would arise in the care associations.
