A survey by the Commons health committee found that councils were cutting social care budgets by an average of 6.6 per cent while raising charges for services such as home help.
MPs warned that funding cuts were becoming “more urgent day by day” and said the Government needed to overhaul the social care system and raise funding.
The report also warned that the government’s reforms of the NHS were proving a “distraction” and putting attempts to save £20 billion by 2014 in jeopardy.
The committee said far-reaching reorganisation of health services was needed to make the savings, yet NHS trusts were still trying to “salami slice” budgets and reach their targets with short-term cuts.
The situation was not sustainable and the magnitude of the challenge had not been fully grasped, it said.
The committee recommended that the Government consider diverting more money from the NHS into social care.
The survey conducted on behalf of the committee found that councils had reduced spending on care home placements by providing fewer places and driving down the fees paid to homes.
Two thirds also planned to cut long-term support in the community.
Councils were also planning to increase charges made to patients. More than a third had raised their maximum personal charge for social care, almost four in 10 had increased their charges for residential care and half had raised their charges for services such as home help.
Stephen Dorrell, the chairman of the committee, said: “Social care needs to move dramatically up the priority scale to create a more integrated service.”
The report warned that money which should have been spent on integrating the NHS and social care had gone on propping up current services.
The King’s Fund has already estimated that there are 800,000 elderly people who need care but do not receive state help.
Louise Lakey, the policy manager at the Alzheimer’s Society, said “chronic underinvestment” in social care must end.
Michelle Mitchell, the charity director at Age UK, said: “Social care is in crisis. There are fewer services available, yet the numbers of people needing social care is growing.” She urged ministers to heed calls for urgent action.
Andrew Lansley, the Health Secretary, said: “We are giving more money to social care — in 2010 the Government committed an extra £7.2 billion for the future of social care. This money means that councils have enough to maintain the current levels of access and eligibility.” He said councils needed “to work smarter” with their “health professional colleagues”.
The report said NHS reforms continue to complicate the push for efficiency gains. NHS bodies were “squeezing existing services simply to get through the first year of the programme” rather than looking for long-term reforms, it found.
Mr Lansley said: “Our plans for modernisation are essential if we are to put the NHS on a sustainable footing for the future.”
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