Update: Daycare and More Elderly Services

An update from a previous post about welfare and daycare centers for the elderly. Starting this year, those aged 80+ will be receiving monthly allowances as well as have more access to day care services. Wang Zhenyao, the director of the social welfare and charity affairs office, declared that every province in China is encouraged to have a monthly allowance program. He also said that within five years, every community would have an elderly day care nursery. Because there is not equal distribution in the amount of allowances that cities give to their citizens, there is an imbalance in elderly care and benefits. While many older adults like this program that hands out cash allowances, there are also those that dislike it. Some critics believe that instead of handing cash out to citizens, that the money should be used to support nursing homes that do not have the proper funds to be able to survive without the extra cash flow. Most of the senior citizens, however, approve of these cash payments. They are easy, convenient, and flexible (they can use them to pay for goods, services, groceries, bills!)

information received from:
http://en.cncaprc.gov.cn/en/iroot1007210001/4028e47d26c07bda012798cc33290370.html

Beijing Pushing Residents Towards Private Nursing Homes?

The city of Beijing is attempting to push citizens towards more private options and is trying to steer them away from governmental institutions. The government is offering subsidizes for these non-governmental institutions (which is cheaper for them and more beneficial for citizens). If desired, welfare organizations for the elderly (as well as those for orphans) can apply to local government departments for 100 yuan (about $12.09) a month per bed. This measure also allows elderly homes that are owned by the government but run through private funding can be eligible for 50 yuan a month per bed subsidies. With the current elderly population in China continuing to grow, it is no surprise that it is expensive to care for these citizens (especially as health care is most expensive in old age). By subsidizing these beds 50-100 yuan a month, the government can save a lot of money while allowing citizens to benefit financially. Although the subsidizes may encourage more people to open up nursing homes, there is still an enormous shortage of care for the elderly. Right now there are only 1.5 beds for every 100 of Beijing's citizens (aged 60+). Hopefully with these new subsidies more people will decide to open up nursing homes.

information received from:
http://www.china.org.cn/english/Life/126277.htm

Welfare Plan for Seniors

According to China Daily, the Ministry of Civil Affairs will have a standard payment system for those citizens aged 80 and older. As of 2008, the aged popularion in China was 169 million, 12.79% of the total population. By 2020, with the current aging rate, the population could vastly increase to 248 million, which would be 17% of China's population! The ministry also has wants to have daycare centers for elderly citizens. Further, China also is raising the pension for some retirees by 10% in 2010. The goal is for government (local and federal) to be able to put aside at least 318.5 billion yuan into the social security fund in the year 2010. This pension plan pays out 120 yuan a month per person which is an increase from when program began in 2005.

information received from:
http://en.cncaprc.gov.cn/en/iroot1007210001/4028e47d26c07bda01278e7b3e2402e8.html

http://en.cncaprc.gov.cn/en/iroot1007210001/4028e47d26c07bda012785692b07027d.html

Healthcare reform aids the poor

In the city of Zhongwei, China, the local government has provided medical assistance to citizens. They are able to help with medical care costs, by reimbursing a portion of the costs that people would have had to pay (and many would not have been able to afford). They have a simple application process that allows for patients' out-of-pocket fees to be subsidized, allowing more lower income people to receive the care they need, without having to stress about the price as much. This policy will hopefully encourage more people from lower socio-economic backgrounds to receive the care they need.

information received from:
http://en.cncaprc.gov.cn/en/iroot1007210001/4028e47d26c07bda01276a5cc3a101a6.html

"Second Generaton" migrant workers

This new generation of citizens, the children of migrant workers, do not have the same passion for farmland as their parents. Yet, they do share the same dream as their parents in some regards. One of which is wealth. They dream of equal rights and living in a country where they no longer have to face social problems. Currently they are marginalized and discriminated against even though their work has caused China's economic growth to increase by 8%. Because of hukou (a household registration system), migrant workers are not able to have to privileges of "education, medical care, housing, employment and other public services" (Xinhua). Eventually the government has plans to let workers gradually become urban residents.

information received from:
http://en.cncaprc.gov.cn/en/iroot1007210001/4028e47d26c07bda0127658661530193.html

Better Social Security for Disabled Elderly

China's new government work report has focused more on social security for disabled. Currently there are over 83 million disabled people living in China, which is equivalent to 6.34% of the population. Of this 6.34%, over 70% of these disabled citizens are residing in poor, rural areas. Never before has the Chinese government included these social services in their governmental report.

sources from:

http://en.cncaprc.gov.cn/en/iroot1007210001/4028e47d26c07bda0127501409cc016f.html

More home care a solution?

In 2050 one-third of the Chinese population will be senior citizens, about 437 million people. Because the Chinese population is aging so rapidly there is an urgent need to confront the upcoming aging problems, as well as providing adequate care to the elderly. The government is actively trying to ensure that there will be programs in place to care for their older adult population. Urban communities will be required to provide services for the elderly by the end of this year. Along with the urban community requirement, 80% of rural towns will also be required to have service centers for the aged. Some home care services will be provided by the community as well as a free service card for older adults. The service card will cover the costs for 15 hours of housekeeping services a month. Senior citizens will also be able to get help from community hospital, community committees, and street health stations, all of which will help the elderly with daily activities (eating, bathing, laundry, grocery shopping, etc.). Because of this increase in home care, older adults residing in villages will not have to stress about depending on their children. Only "6 to 8 percent [of Chinese aged 60 or older] are willing to enter retirement homes". This will cause a lot of issues for the government because the number of people that are not able to live by themselves has also increased. Traditionally elderly people live with their children once they retire but now about 50% of senior citizens live alone and the other 50% live with relatives. Most older adults would like to live alone and as such the government must provide adequate care for them. These home services will allow the Chinese elderly to maintain their independence.

information recieved from:

http://www.china.org.cn/english/China/243548.htm
http://www.chinagate.cn/english/news/49537.htm

Delayed Retirement = relieved strain on pension funds?

That's what one Chinese city is hoping. Shanghai has plans to elongate the retirement for men and women so that their city pension fund is not as strained. Working citizens get money to live off from their employers (rather than governmental programs) and they also continue contributing taxes to social services. This extended retirement could also benefit individuals, not just the pension fund. Many older adults enjoy their work and find it fulfilling. Often they are forced out of their job and into retirement (such as pilots with their required retirement age) when they are still capable of working and working well! These individuals would be able to complete fulfilling work while helping the city alleviate their pension fund. Businesses, however, do not want to extend the retirement age. Currently, they can retire men at age 60 and women at age 50 or 55 (depending on the type of work that they do) and re-recruit/re-hire them for a drastically smaller salary. Retired employees are able to receive monthly pensions, so the company that they retire from feels no guilt in paying them significantly less. Businesses are not the only ones that would be upset with this policy change. Recent college graduates looking to enter the job market would find less opportunities and more competition. This policy may benefit the older generations of Chinese but what will happen to the younger generations? Where will they get their work experience? Money to live off of? Will the economy begin to dip if the majority of employment is reserved for older adults?



Information received from:
http://en.cncaprc.gov.cn/en/iroot1007210001/4028e47d26c07bda0126f09b528e0023.html

One-Child Policy - No more?

Part of China's who will care for the elderly crisis stems from the fact that families are only allowed one child. Because of this, there is a giant imbalance in the Chinese population. Especially since technology has changed that has allowed people to live longer and healthier lives, there are less and less people to care for the older generations. Women are heading into the workforce and waiting to have children - this means that the population, while large, is decreasing since parents are not having two children to replace them later in life. China's working population is growing extremely fast because of the economic boom, but soon enough all of those people will be elderly and in need of care. Shanghai has already withdrawn the one-child policy because they are trying to get more younger generations. Instead of having a healthy population balance that looks like a rectangle, or even a triangle, China's population will soon look like an upside down triangle, with a lot of elderly at the top, and almost no working population. If this occurs, then with the lack of working adults in the country, China will not only get old, but face serious problems. Instead of being an innovative country that looks forward towards the future with new working technologies and productivity, they will have to care for and help their aged citizens, a time-consuming and expensive responsibility.


Information received from:
http://www.forbes.com/2009/07/24/china-shanghai-demography-population-opinions-columnists-one-child-policy.html

xiao shun - filial piety

China is known for a tradition of filial piety, where the younger generations are required to take care of the older generations once they age and need more help. Now days, this tradition is strained as more and more younger adults desire careers. Especially since women (who traditionally stayed home to care for the elderly parents) are more in the workforce now than ever before, the question of who will care for China's elderly is at stake. Also, more women are waiting longer in order to have children, so that they can go to school longer or go into the work force. These are things that they weren't capable of before when they married so young. Traditions change, and as time goes on, a lot more change will occur in this country. This leaves the elderly in a difficult situation. Who will care for them in their old age?! 11% of China's 1.3 billion population are older than 60 and since they do not have the same social programs installed in China, what will happen to the population as they age?

Information received from:
http://bulletin.aarp.org/yourworld/family/articles/the_aging_of_china.html

Image received from:
http://www.heritage-history.com/books/bergen/china/zpage035.gif