In brief
Bulgaria’s Ministry of Labour and Social Policy announced a €7 million investment to establish integrated health and social residential care for 43 elderly people in the Montana Region. The new facilities will serve residents in Lom, Montana and Chiprovtsi and are slated to be operational by 1 January 2035. The plan complements existing institutions and expands home‑based support services.
In the Montana Region of Bulgaria, authorities announced a plan to open integrated health and social residential care facilities for 43 elderly people who are unable to care for themselves. The new services will be located in the municipalities of Lom, Montana and Chiprovtsi, offering ongoing medical care and support.
According to Labour and Social Policy Minister Natalia Efremova, the new homes will accommodate 12 residents in Lom, 23 in Montana and eight in Chiprovtsi. These numbers bring the total capacity of the region’s new integrated facilities to 43 people who will receive comprehensive medical and social assistance.
The project is funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, with a budget of €7 million earmarked for the Montana Region alone. The national allocation for the entire country is €188 million, and the funds will cover construction, equipment and the ongoing operation of the new facilities.
Montana Region already has three municipal care homes that serve 229 residents. The National Map of Social Services envisages the addition of 121 elderly people of retirement age to be housed in newly upgraded or constructed institutions. The new facilities are expected to increase overall residential capacity to 91 people across the three municipalities.
In addition to the new homes, the state supports elderly people through in‑home assistance services. Currently, 498 residents benefit from support in all 11 municipalities of the region, while 2,683 people with disabilities receive aid under the Personal Assistance Act. The projects that Minister Efremova described are part of a broader strategy to improve quality standards for residential care and ensure access to comprehensive services.
All services listed in the National Map of Social Services must be established by 1 January 2035, the minister said during parliamentary question time. The Montana and Chiprovtsi municipalities have already submitted project proposals under the “Support for Integrated Urban Development in 40 Urban Municipalities” procedure, the second component of the Regions in Growth Programme.
Minister Efremova stressed that the state provides an additional form of support for elderly people through assistance services that enable them to remain in their homes. The comprehensive plan underscores the government’s priority to balance institutional care with at‑home assistance while gradually closing specialized facilities that do not meet modern quality standards.
The integrated services aim to provide a holistic approach to elder care. By combining health and social support in one setting, the new facilities seek to improve quality of life for the region’s most vulnerable residents and to create a sustainable model for other regions in Bulgaria.
