Dependency care as a driver of economic development

Abstract

The aging of the population in most developed countries makes necessary to establish action policies to ensure care for this population. In order to achieve this aim, the idea that allocating money to dependency is a expenditure must be banished and consider it as an investment that contributes to economic development and can be quantified in terms of impact on employment generation and wealth. This study analyses the economic impact of the dependency care (given through residential care centres or day care centres) in the region of Cantabria (Spain), as well as of the Home Care System. Dependency care generates directly 24 jobs for every million EUR invested by the Administration in this sector. If we include the indirect and induced impact, the job creation rises to 36 jobs, with the consequent effect in production, consumption and tax revenues.