Caring for the Elderly

Enhance Elderly Care Services

• Continue increasing subsidized residential care places for the elderly across all service types.

• Expand the provision of Community Care Service Vouchers and Residential Care Service Vouchers.

• Collect and analyze data to evaluate the effectiveness of the $2 Scheme, including its impact on quality of life and outreach to hidden elders.

• Strictly address "taking long-haul routes for short journeys" issues, such as by requiring bus companies to implement separate tap-in and tap-out systems.

• Promote the wider adoption of age-friendly technology, including health monitoring bracelets, fall detection systems, and voice-activated smart home devices, to help seniors live independently.

Enhance Cross-Border Elderly Care Measures

• Advance the development of medical-and-elderly care by expanding the scope of health care vouchers to cover inpatient services and day surgery procedures, broadening the data interoperability of the electronic health record sharing system to include radiological images and laboratory results, and increasing the number of designated hospitals or medical institutions eligible under the "measure of using HK registered drugs and medical devices used in HK public hospitals in Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area”.

• Coordinate with the Administration of Social Insurance Fund of Shenzhen to allow Hong Kong seniors aged 60 and above retiring in Shenzhen to enroll in the "Basic Medical Insurance Fund for Urban and Rural Residents."

• Establish a quality accreditation system for mainland elderly care facilities that aligns with the needs of Hong Kong seniors, facilitating the selection of suitable retirement institutions in the mainland.

• Extend the "Guangdong Scheme" and "Fujian Scheme" to additional provinces.

• Enable elderly individuals receiving Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) in the mainland to access special grants and consumables allowances under the CSSA scheme.

Develop the Silver Economy

• Develop new elderly housing complexes, drawing on models like the Hong Kong Housing Society's “Senior Citizen Residences Scheme” and Macau’s “Apartment for Senior Citizens,” to meet the demand from middle-income seniors for residences that integrate recreational, healthcare, and support services.

• Boost the supply of senior housing by reducing land premiums, accelerated approval processes, and permitting commercial/industrial building conversions.

• Promote market development of stable-yield, innovative retirement financial products.

• Encourage insurance-retirement integration models in the Greater Bay Area by developing products that combine insurance with pension planning, allowing seniors to access accommodation and care services after retirement.

• Establish soft diets standards and promote their permanent inclusion in major restaurants to facilitate community integration for seniors.