‘The money has run out,’ Swedish nursing home cuts food amid rising migrant costs

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Elderly residents of Kärråkra’s nursing home in Eslöv, Sweden, are now receiving porridge without milk due to financial constraints, a striking contrast to the municipality's recent allocation of funds to accommodate migrants in hotels, as per local media sources.

The alarming decline in the quality of care at the care home was spotlighted by Samnytt news. Sofia Persson, the facility’s manager, while speaking to the Skånska Dagbladet newspaper, confirmed the grim financial situation, Remix News reported.

She said, “The money has run out,” indicating the budgetary exhaustion faced by the home before the month's end, which restricted purchases of essentials like milk.

Highlighting the challenging scenario, Persson voiced her distress, noting the growing dissatisfaction among residents over the diminishing meal quality, especially during month-ends. However, she mentioned an alternative: residents averse to milk-free porridge can opt for sandwiches.

Interestingly, Samnytt news emphasized that not all residents receive publicly funded meals. Some, possessing the financial means, are billed for their breakfasts, with the prices recently seeing an upward revision by the local authority.

This financial strain emerges amid revelations of the local government’s significant expenditure on hotel accommodations for migrants.

The news site reported:

Elderly people in wheelchairs with broken hips are thrown out into the street and 90-year-olds who cannot manage at home are denied a place in nursing homes.

This is at the same time as the municipality of Eslöv has spent tens of millions on housing so-called unaccompanied migrants in hotels.

Furthermore, concerns intensify over the quality of care in regional nursing homes. Reports suggest an influx of newly-arrived staff, often struggling with language barriers and lacking proper training, which could affect the care quality.

The Samnytt article highlighted, “Eslöv is not unique, this is how it looks in most municipalities in Sweden today.”

This crisis isn't entirely new. As far back as 2015, Reuters highlighted Sweden's mounting asylum-seeker expenses, forcing the nation to adopt austerity measures and escalate borrowing. At that juncture, the country's Migration Agency had amplified its budgetary projection for asylum seekers, signaling a need for an additional 70 billion Swedish crowns (approx. $8.41 billion) over the forthcoming two years. Since that period, the migrant populace in Sweden has seen a significant rise.

Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson, back in 2015, had pointed out the unsustainable nature of these rising asylum costs and had urged fellow European nations to shoulder more of the responsibility.

Indeed, this is not an isolated case. Data from Germany, for instance, suggests that in 2023, the country anticipates spending a staggering €36 billion on migrants, even as services and support for the elderly face cuts.