BEIJING, July 30 (Xinhua) -- About 2 million elderly people with disabilities in China have received government subsidies to purchase caregiving services so far this year, the country's Ministry of Civil Affairs announced Thursday at a press conference.
The subsidies are available to older individuals who have been assessed as having moderate or more severe disabilities, based on criteria that evaluate their ability to perform daily activities as well as their mental, sensory and cognitive functions.
The Chinese government rolled out this nationwide subsidy program at the beginning of this year, after several months of pilot in limited regions. So far, elderly care service providers across the country have recorded more than 6.5 billion yuan (about 957 million U.S. dollars) in service payments covered by the subsidies, according to the ministry.
The ministry estimated that the subsidy program has generated about 29 billion yuan in growth for the elderly care service sector. ■
