Zhang Haidi, a member of the National Committee of the CPPCC, gives a speech during the conference. [Photo/Xinhua]

The third plenary meeting of the second session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 10, 2019. Zhang Haidi, a member of the National Committee of the CPPCC, gave a speech during the conference:

Since 1998, I have been elected as a member of the CPPCC National Committee for five consecutive sessions. I know that is the trust of the Party and the people, and I will shoulder the heavy responsibility. 

Over the past two decades, I have strived to discharge my duty, together with other members of the welfare sector, by putting forward a lot of suggestions to protect the rights and interests of people with disabilities, and to make their lives better. 

There are 85 million people with disabilities in China, accounting for 6.34 percent of the total population. Among them, more than 25 million people are severely disabled and some 10 million are in need of special care. Unfortunately, only about 1 million people have access to care services.

We should pay much attention to severely disabled people whose lives are very difficult as they are unable to live independently. Some have no family members to look after them; others could only lie in beds for a long time and have difficulty in walking. The burden on households with people with disabilities is also heavy. To take care of the disabled, other family members in many cases are unable to work, and many households are thus suffering financial problems. Therefore, social care services need to cater to the urgent needs of severely disabled people and their family members. 

We are all longing for health, happiness, dignity and a good quality of life. As a disabled person, I hope that the 85 million disabled people in our country can enjoy such a life. We should help disabled people to achieve a sustainable and happy life; we should help severely disabled people get better care services and relieve the burdens on their family members.

Care services are part of social public services and providing good care services for the severely disabled people is a vital part of poverty reduction. We need support from both the government and the whole society to establish more professional institutes that offer assistance, rehabilitation and medical care for severely disabled people.   

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in November 2012, Party committees and governments at all levels have attached great importance to improving the system and care services for the disabled and advanced the construction of infrastructure.

As of the end of 2018, there were more than 8,400 care service institutes nationwide, the number of which nearly doubles that of 2012. Many places in China have explored their own ways in providing care services for severely disabled people. For example, Fengjie county in Chongqing launched centralized care services for poor and severely disabled people. Leshan county in Sichuan province implemented a "centralized support plus home support" method, while Liaocheng city in Shandong province applied a "neighborhood mutual care" model to help the disabled solve their problems efficiently. 

Ahead of Spring Festival last year, I went to Zhumadian city, Henan province, to study the care services provided for severely disabled people. There were a total of 96 care centers with clean and tidy rooms, food and facilities across the region. Disabled people had three meals a day, regularly bathed and received medical care. The centers conduct professional training and help family members of disabled people to train as nursing staff. For example, a family member of a disabled person who looks after two disabled people at the center can earn 2,000 yuan per month.

Though we have established a system for caring and subsidizing severely disabled people, some poor and low-income areas still lack sufficient funding to support care services. 

It is necessary for us to build a unified system, set standards, ensure funding and improve the care services for the disabled nationwide. People with severe disabilities are the most in need. 

We should try our best to provide good care services to alleviate their pain, family burdens and increase their sense of happiness. Here are my suggestions: 

First, we need to formulate supporting policies and measures on care services for severely disabled people, and improve the funding guarantee system. I suggest government departments strive to provide better care services for severely disabled people by further strengthening public services and paying more attention to the mechanisms related to disabled people such as subsidies, purchasing services, evaluation and supervision. 

Second, we should speed up the development of care services for severely disabled people in rural areas. We need to enhance public services and establish a system mainly based on care centers together with communities for disabled people in rural areas by making full use of existing elderly care centers, welfare facilities, medical institutions and other rural resources.   

Third, we should cultivate more qualified care workers and special teams for disabled people, improving their skills and professionalism to ensure good services.