Nearly 1.03 bln people covered by basic old-age insurance in China: report

Senior residents play table tennis at a geriatric center in Guojiapu Subdistrict of Dingcheng District in Changde, central China's Hunan Province, April 27, 2022. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan)

BEIJING, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- By the end of 2021, the number of people covered by basic old-age insurance in China had reached nearly 1.03 billion, an increase of 30.07 million over the previous year, according to a report on the country's old-age programs.

The report, jointly released by the National Health Commission and the Office of the National Working Commission on Aging, noted that China had 267.36 million elderly people aged 60 and above by the end of last year, accounting for 18.9 percent of the total population.

By the end of 2021, the country had about 200.56 million elderly people aged 65 and above, of whom over 119.41 million had received health services in urban and rural communities, the report stated.

By the end of last year, there were 358,000 elderly care institutions and facilities across the country, providing about 8.16 million beds, the report added.