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The following is issued on behalf of the Community Care Fund Secretariat:
The Community Care Fund (CCF) today (January 31) rolled out the "Provision of Special Subsidy to Persons with Severe Physical Disabilities for Renting Respiratory Support Medical Equipment" programme to provide extra subsidy for the renting of respiratory support medical equipment by persons with severe physical disabilities who live in the community, come from families with financial difficulties and do not receive Comprehensive Social Security Assistance. The programme is administered by the Social Welfare Department (SWD).
Beneficiaries must be, as at July 31, 2012, aged below 60, living in the community and receiving Higher Disability Allowance (HDA) under the Social Security Allowance (SSA) Scheme, and their monthly household income should not exceed the prescribed income limit. When submitting applications, beneficiaries must not be receiving any subsidy from government or other charitable funds for renting respiratory support medical equipment, and should still be receiving HDA under the SSA Scheme with the annual household disposable financial resources not exceeding $180,000.
Beneficiaries will be granted the subsidy for a maximum period of 12 months. For beneficiaries with annual household disposable financial resources of $100,000 or below, a monthly subsidy of $2,500 will be granted. For beneficiaries with annual household disposable financial resources over $100,000 but not exceeding $180,000, a monthly subsidy of $2,000 will be granted.
Starting from early February 2013, the SWD will issue letters to invite applications from persons who may be eligible. Applicants are required to submit the completed application forms together with all necessary documents by post or by hand to the CCF Team of SWD on or before June 30, 2013. After completion of the required procedures, notification of application results will be issued by SWD to the applicants and the payment of subsidy is expected to be made to eligible persons from late March 2013 at the earliest.
For detailed information on the programme, please visit the CCF website (www.communitycarefund.hk) or SWD website (www.swd.gov.hk). For enquiries on completing the application form or other matters in relation to the programme, please call the CCF Team of SWD at 3422 3090 for assistance during office hours.
Ends/Thursday, January 31, 2013
Issued at HKT 18:01
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