The Cabinet of Ministers Introduced Personal Financing of Social Services for IDPs: Funds Will Be Transferred to Special Accounts
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved an experimental project for providing social services of institutional care and supported living for elderly people and persons with disabilities among internally displaced persons based on the principle of "money follows the person."
The corresponding resolution No. 966 was adopted by the government on July 22. The experiment will last until August 8, 2028, and will be implemented within the budget allocations under the program "Development of the social services system, including support for children with disabilities."
The goal of the new mechanism is to enable social service recipients to independently choose the provider, while financing will be made not directly to institutions but to the person through special accounts.
How the new mechanism will work
The Ministry of Social Policy, Family and Unity has been designated as the coordinator of the experimental project.
Its participants will include:
- The Social Protection Fund for Persons with Disabilities — responsible for forming the list of social service providers and financing institutional care and supported living services;
- The National Social Service — will monitor compliance with legislation and state standards for providing social services;
- Banks, including JSC CB "PrivatBank" — will open special accounts for crediting budget funds to pay for services.
Social service providers and local self-government bodies will also be involved in the project implementation.
Who will be able to receive services
The experiment applies to:
- elderly internally displaced persons;
- persons with disabilities among IDPs who require institutional care or supported living.
People for whom a decision to provide social services was already made under the previous procedure will be able to continue receiving them without reapplying — provided the need for such services remains, a contract is concluded, and there are no grounds for termination of service provision.
What will change for service recipients
The Social Protection Fund for Persons with Disabilities will transfer budget funds monthly to special accounts of social service recipients with a special usage regime.
The Fund is also tasked to:
- ensure the calculation and transfer of funds based on contracts specified in the second paragraph of point 4 of this resolution;
- provide consultative support to social service providers regarding the implementation of the experimental project;
- within its authority, include social service providers in the list of providers participating in the experimental project;
- submit a consolidated report by the 10th of each month to the Ministry of Social Policy, Family and Unity on the number of social service recipients and the amount of funds transferred for provided social services.
Quality control of services
The National Social Service will monitor whether the provided services comply with established state standards and will also check the observance of recipients' rights. By the 15th of each month, the National Social Service must submit a report on the results of this control to the Social Protection Fund for Persons with Disabilities.
Local self-government bodies must designate responsible persons for organizing social service provision, identify the needs of elderly IDPs and persons with disabilities, and assist them in interacting with providers.
Digitalization and further reform
The Ministry of Social Policy, Family and Unity must develop functionality for monetizing social services within the Unified Information System of the Social Sphere by January 1, 2027.
After the experiment concludes, the government will receive a report on its results and proposals for possible legislative amendments.
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