XN000022-1981-11-17 — Page 7

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 1981

MR LAW SAID THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PEOPLE RECEIVING SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS STOOD AT ABOUT 250 000 OR 4.8 PER CENT OF THE POPULATION.

+ IF WE LOOK AT EACH CATEGORY SEPARATELY, IT APPEARS THAT IN GENERAL WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO REACH THOSE WHOM WE ARE SUPPOSED TO ASSIST,+ HE SAID.

ABOUT 90 PER CENT OF THOSE OVER 70 ARE RECEIVING OLD AGE ALLOWANCE, AND IT IS EXPECTED THAT THIS PERCENTAGE WILL GO UP STEADILY IN THE COMING YEARS.

FOR THOSE ELIGIBLE FOR DISABILITY ALLOWANCE, THERE ARE REASONS TO BELIEVE THAT ONLY A SMALL PERCENTAGE HAS NOT YET COME FORWARD FOR THIS BENEFIT.

AS TO PUBLIC ASSISTANCE, IT IS MORE DIFFICULT TO ESTIMATE THE NUMBER OF FAMILIES WHO ARE LIVING BELOW PUBLIC ASSISTANCE LEVEL AND YET HAVE NOT COME FORWARD.

AS TO THE CRIMINAL AND LAW ENFORCEMENT INJURIES COMPENSATION SCHEME, ONLY ABOUT 14.4 PER CENT OF THE REPORTED CASES APPLIED FOR COMPENSATION EACH YEAR.

+ IT IS NOT KNOWN WHETHER THIS LEVEL OF APPLICATION IS SATISFACTORY OR NOT, AS PEOPLE WHO ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE IR OWN INJURIES MAY HAVE THE IR COMPENSATION REDUCED AND THEREFORE NORMALLY DO NOT COME FORWARD, AND MINOR INJURIES OF LESS THAN THREE DAYS' SICK LEAVE ARE NOT ELIGIBLE, MR LAW SAID.

MR LAW DESCRIBED THE LEVEL OF APPLICATION FOR THE TRAFFIC ACCIDENT VICTIMS ASSISTANCE SCHEME AS +SATISFACTORY+. NINETY-SIX PER CENT OF THE FATAL CASES AND 79.6 PER CENT OF THOSE ELIGIBLE SERIOUS INJURED CASES APPLIED.

+POSITIVE EFFORTS HAVE BEEN MADE TO REACH OUT TO ELIGIBLE VICTIMS SO AS TO ASSIST THEM TO MAKE THE BEST USE OF THESE COMPENSATION SCHEMES,+ HE SAID.

DRUG-TREATMENT COURSE FOR VISITING DOCTORS ENDS

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TWENTY-TWO DOCTORS FROM 12 COUNTRIES TODAY (TUESDAY) ENDED THEIR THREE-WEEK-LONG COURSE ON THE TREATMENT AND REHABILITATION OF DRUG-DEPENDENT PERSONS.

THE COURSE WAS THE THIRD OF ITS KIND ORGANISED BY THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANISATION (WHO), AND BEGAN ON OCTOBER 27.

IT ENABLED PARTICIPANTS TO LEARN ABOUT THE LATEST THEORY AND PRACTICE IN DRUG-ADDICTION TREATMENT AND REHABILITATION AS WELL AS THE ORGANISATION AND MANAGEMENT OF HONG KONG'S PROGRAMMES.

/LECTURES WERE