A 65-year-old mother has cared for her severely disabled son for more than 20 years, and they still live together. As she grows older, she worries about where he will live and who will care for him in the future.
Legislator Grace Chan Man-yee has proposed a pilot using some places in homes participating in the Guangdong Residential Care Services Scheme for older parents and their disabled children who need residential care, allowing them to choose to live together. She argues that there is limited room to develop the arrangement in Hong Kong, while the existing scheme could accommodate new services.
The scheme currently includes 29 mainland care homes. The Social Welfare Department said 1,600 Hong Kong elderly people had entered homes through it by the end of September 2026, about ten times the 2023 figure.
Chan suggests starting cautiously with people with physical disabilities, whose needs she considers similar to those of older people. She proposes clear arrangements for voluntary participation, assessment, withdrawal and return to Hong Kong, with the operating details developed gradually.
The mother and her son took part in a visit and trial stay at three participating homes in Guangdong in early September. She said some had family rooms that felt more like home, as well as larger living and shared spaces where her son could move about in his wheelchair. She also said medical care, rehabilitation, transport and government subsidies would need further consideration.
The Social Welfare Department said it would study different suggestions and hear stakeholders’ views on the proposal.