Disabled Shenzhen residents will receive 20 million yuan (US$2.74 million) in social insurance subsidies every year from the municipal government, according to a regulation issued Tuesday.

Starting this year, subsidies will be provided to the disabled on the basis of extent of disability, employment status and family income, according to the regulation.

The beneficiaries have been divided into the following groups: Employed disabled people, unemployed disabled people, disabled people living on government welfare and severely disabled people.

At present, there are about 50,000 disabled people in Shenzhen. Although the government has taken measures to support them, not many employed disabled people have social insurance.

In addition, many low-income families with disabled members face financial difficulties. The nearly 3,000 severely disabled people in the city receive only a meager amount of social insurance.

(Shenzhen Daily January 19, 2008)