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The Social Welfare Department (SWD) announced today (October 30) that the "Integrated Support Service for Persons with Severe Physical Disabilities" (ISS) will be launched on November 1, 2014 to address the needs of persons with severe physical disabilities and provide them with appropriate support.
Apart from regularising two assistance programmes under the Community Care Fund (CCF), namely "Provision of Special Subsidy to Persons with Severe Physical Disabilities for Renting Respiratory Support Medical Equipment" and "Provision of Special Subsidy to Persons with Severe Physical Disabilities for Purchasing Medical Consumables Related to Respiratory Support Medical Equipment", the ISS will also provide one-stop integrated home based support services, co-ordinated by case managers, including nursing care, rehabilitation training, personal care and carer support services, to enable service users to continue living in their familiar community.
The SWD is now inviting persons with severe physical disabilities who are depending on respiratory support medical equipment, or persons with tetraplegia living in the community, to apply.
Under the two cash assistance programmes of the ISS, namely the "Special Subsidy for Renting Respiratory Support Medical Equipment" and the "Special Subsidy for Purchasing Medical Consumables", the subsidy level is both capped at $2,500 per month. The amount of subsidy disbursed will be subject to the actual cost of the recognised item(s) claimed. The applicants should currently be using respiratory support medical equipment and receive income and asset assessment. For integrated home based support services co-ordinated by case managers, including persons with severe physical disabilities mentioned above, no income or asset assessment is required.
An SWD spokesman said that for persons who are existing beneficiaries of the above-mentioned CCF assistance programme(s), they can receive the subsidies up to October 31, 2014 subject to the verification of eligibility. To assist eligible persons with severe physical disabilities in receiving the subsidies continuously upon regularisation of the assistance programmes, the SWD will issue letters to invite the existing beneficiaries of the two CCF assistance programmes to apply the service on or before January 31, 2015. Subject to verification of eligibility, the subsidies they are entitled to receive will be calculated from November 1, 2014 and disbursed on a quarterly basis.
In addition, letters will be issued to persons with severe physical disabilities who may be eligible for the ISS to make an application, the spokesman said.
The ISS will be operated in two regional clusters, "Hong Kong Island and Kowloon" and "New Territories", by Yang Memorial Methodist Social Service and Po Leung Kuk respectively.
For details of the ISS, including the two regularised assistance programmes, please visit the SWD website (www.swd.gov.hk). For enquiries, people may call the following non-governmental organisations operating the ISS according to the applicant's residential district.
Districts according Non-governmental Telephone
to applicant's Organisations Number
residential address operating the ISS
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Hong Kong Island Yang Memorial 3959 1700
and Kowloon Methodist
Social Service
New Territories Po Leung Kuk 5174 9436 /
5129 3065
Ends/Thursday, October 30, 2014
Issued at HKT 16:01
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