He made the request recently at a year-end meeting of the National Committee on the Elderly.

He asked the MOLISA to promote the implementation of the Law on the Elderly while reviewing and assessing programmes and projects supporting the elderly to propose solutions to reallocate resources, gradually switching from direct support to indirect support through social security policies, then submitting the solutions to the Prime Minister for the launching of the National Programme on the Elderly in the 2021-30 period.

The Ministry of Health was assigned to work with MOLISA, Vietnam Social Security (VSS) and other relevant agencies to instruct localities to complete the issuance of health insurance cards for the elderly in 2021.

They are tasked with instructing localities to set up and manage health records for the elderly and train medical workers at the grassroots level with elderly care skills.

Deputy Minister Vu Duc Dam speaks at the meeting. Photo Internet

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism was asked to implement Directive No 11/CT-TTg dated March 29, 2017 of the Prime Minister on promoting moral education and life in the family as well as promoting cultural, sports and tourism activities among the elderly.

The Ministry of Transport is responsible for supervising public transport ticket price reductions for the elderly and creating conditions for the elderly to access to means of transport, stations and parking lots.

The Ministry of Construction must ensure that designs are suitable to the characteristics and needs, creating a friendly environment for the elderly; continue to implement housing support policies to prevent storms and floods for poor and near-poor households, giving priority to households with old people.

The VSS must co-ordinate with ministries and associations in dissemination work to increase the rate of health insurance and social security participants, including the elderly.

The Deputy PM asked the VSS to work with the Ministry of Health in implementing health insurance policies to improve the quality of medical examination and treatment to meet the healthcare needs of people and the elderly. They must apply information technology to settle and pay social security and health insurance premium to participants, with priority given to the elderly.

Deputy PM Dam said people’s committees of central-level provinces and cities must encourage people to participate in insurance at young ages to prepare for old age while calling for participation of the private sector in elderly care.