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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 1985
HONG KONG HAD A REASONABLE NETWORK OF SOCIAL SECURITY PROVISIONS TO HELP THOSE LEAST ABLE TO HELP THEMSELVES, HE SAID, ADDING THAT NO ONE NEED SUFFER A LACK OF FINANCIAL RESOURCES TO MAINTAIN A BASIC STANDARD OF LIVING.
FOR THE PUBLIC ASSISTANCE SCHEME, MR LAW CITED EXAMPLES OF A SINGLE PERSON AGED 60 AND WITH PEPTIC ULCER WHO RECEIVED ABOUT $1 210 TO $1 450 A MONTH AND A FAMILY OF SIX WHICH RECEIVED ABOUT $4 000 A MONTH PLUS SPECIAL EXPENDITURES FOR SCHOOL UNIFORMS. TEXTBOOKS, SPECTACLES, DENTURES, REHABILITATION APPLIANCES ETC.
THE LEVEL OF ASSISTANCE MIGHT NOT APPEAR HIGH, BUT RECIPIENTS WERE CERTAINLY FREE FROM WORRIES OVER THE IR BASIC DAILY NEEDS, MR LAW SAID.
BESIDES THE PUBLIC ASSISTANCE SCHEME, THERE WAS THE SPECIAL NEEDS ALLOWANCE SCHEME WHICH WAS NON-MEANS-TESTED AND QUALIFICATION WAS BASED ON THE DISABILITY OR AGE OF THE APPLICANT.
MR LAW SAID THE OLD AGE ALLOWANCE OF $255 A MONTH WAS PROVIDE IN RECOGNITION OF THE FACT THAT PERSONS OVER 70 HAD SPECIAL NEEDS= WHILE THE DISABILITY ALLOWANCE OF $510 A MONTH ACCEPTED THE FACT THAT A SEVERELY DISABLED PERSON HAD TO INCUR ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURE BECAUSE OF HIS DISABILITY.
+AT PRESENT, OVER 85 PER CENT OF ALL PERSONS AGED 70 AND OVER ARE RECEIVING THE MONTHLY OLD AGE ALLOWANCE, THAT IS SOME 220 000 PERSONS WHILE SOME 47 000 SEVERELY DISABLED PERSONS ARE RECEIVING THE DISABILITY ALLOWANCE,+ HE SAID.
THREE OTHER SCHEMES - THE TRAFFIC ACCIDENT VICTIMS ASSISTANCE (TAVA), THE CRIMINAL AND LAW ENFORCEMENT INJURIES COMPENSATION (CLEIC AND THE EMERGENCY RELIEF ARE DESIGNED TO MEET THE MORE UNEXPECTED MISHAPS OF LIFE.
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THE TAVA SCHEME PROVIDES IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE TO A PERSON INJURED OR TO THE FAMILY OF A PERSON KILLED IN A TRAFFIC ACCIDENT REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE VICTIM IS AT FAULT IN THE ACCIDENT.
IN THE CLEIC SCHEME, INNOCENT PARTIES INJURED OR KILLED BY CRIMINALS OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE ARRESTS OF CRIMINALS BY THE POLICE, ALSO GET IMMEDIATE CASH ASSISTANCE.
VICTIMS OF FIRE, FLOODS, TYPHOONS, LANDSLIDES AND SO ON CAN ALSO GET PROMPT ASSISTANCE FROM THE EMERGENCY RELIEF SCHEME.
..ND +THE LEVELS OF PAYMENT ON ALL THREE SCHEMES ARE THE SAME THE HIGHEST AWARD FOR AN INJURY CASE IS $49 010 WHILE THAT FOR A FATAL CASE IS $57 870. THIS IS IMMEDIATE ASSISTANCE AS A WELFARE MEASURE, AND IS NOT FULL COMPENSATION AS SUCH, MR LAW SAID.
LAST YEAR THE THREE SCHEMES ASSISTED 5 168 TRAFFIC ACCIDENT VICTIMS, 656 VICTIMS OF CRIME AND 2 723 CASES OF NATURAL DISASTERS, HE ADDED.
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