News Brief

(IsraelNN.com) Welfare Minister Yitzchak Herzog and head of the Knesset’s Welfare Committee Moshe Sharoni argued Thursday over the implementation of a new law, which would grant government payments for nursing assistance directly to elderly patients. The aid is currently granted via nursing agencies, which take a sizable portion of the aid for various administrative purposes.

The law was supposed to go into effect in four regions on June 1st for a trial period of two years. Herzog decided to push off the beginning of the implementation for three months, citing social workers’ concerns that some families might take the money and leave elderly patients without proper nursing care.

Herzog explained that he intends to begin the trial period as soon as possible, but said that the proposal was “a hurried procedure with no criteria for implementation.” Sharoni accused him of “trampling on the law,” saying that if Herzog wanted to change the date of the implementation he must do so according to the proper legal means.