Orbán cabinet to raise subsidy for parents taking care of permanently sick children

The government will raise the caregiver subsidy for parents tending to a permanently sick child in their homes to a monthly 100,000 forints (EUR 307) on Jan. 1, the state secretary for family affairs told a press conference on Thursday.

Katalin Novák said that the subsidy will be further increased to reach the minimum wage in 2022.

The subsidy for people staying at home to take care of sick family members other than their children will also be raised, by 15 percent, in January and by a further 5 percent each year until 2022.

Currently people in charge of sick family members receive a monthly net amount between 29,340 and 52,812 forints (EUR 90-162) from state coffers.

The leftist opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) welcomed the planned hike, but added that they would continue fighting for caregiving to be officially recognised as employment so that caregivers are awarded the relevant benefits.

DK deputy leader László Varju told a press conference that the hike would only benefit 17,000 families with sick or disabled children, while there would be no change for 33,000 other families with a sick member. He urged the government not to discriminate between children and other family members requiring permanent care.

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Photo: MTI