Almost 88,000 households applied for elderly-friendly home improvement scheme

SINGAPORE — Nearly 88,000 households have applied for a Housing and Development Board (HDB) programme to enhance home safety for the elderly since it was introduced in July 2012.

Out of this number, about 52,500 households have opted for the programme called Enhancement for Active Seniors (Ease), together with the Home Improvement Programme (HIP), the HDB said on Sunday (May 22). 

Under the Ease programme, Singaporean households can choose a range of elderly-friendly fittings to help older family members move around their flats more easily.

These include slip-resistant treatment for floor tiles of one bathroom/toilet, and installation of eight or 10 grab bars for one bathroom/toilet and/or within the flat.

In August 2014, the Ease programme was expanded to allow households with two bathrooms to install grab bars and a slip-resistant floor treatment in their second toilet.

The age criterion was also lowered — households with an elderly family member who is at least 65 years old, instead of at least 70 previously, are now eligible to apply directly for the Ease scheme. 

Since then, a total of 41,800 households have benefited from the enhanced programme, said the HDB. 

About 70 per cent of this number took up the improvements, along with the HIP. This allows works for both programmes to be carried out at the same time.

Under the scheme, the Government provides a subsidy of up to 95 per cent of the total cost of the improvement works. If residents opt for the full expanded scope of fittings, the total cost will be S$2,500 for each flat. With the subsidy, Singaporean households will need to pay only between S$125 and S$312.50, depending on flat type.

To promote awareness of the Ease programme among senior citizens, the HDB has produced a video  in five dialects — Cantonese, Hokkien, Teochew, Hakka and Hainan — as well as the four official languages.

From July 2015 to January this year, the HDB also sent mailers on the Ease programme, with a set of frequently asked questions, to more than 700,000 households.