Hong Kong's disabled people twice as likely to face poverty, study finds

Almost half of Hong Kong's disabled people live in poverty - more than double the rate for the general population - according to the first ever official report on poverty among the city's disabled population. Released last night on the Commission on Poverty's website, the report sparked calls for more action to help disabled people enter the workforce and claim welfare.

The study found that some 45.3 per cent of disabled people live in households that are below the poverty line, against 19.9 per cent of the general population. After taking into account "policy intervention" - such as welfare - the rates fall to 29.5 per cent and 14.5 per cent, respectively.

The difference is starkest among people of working age, where the poverty rate is 35.9 per cent, against 14.2 per cent for all people aged 18 to 64. More than half of elderly disabled people were in poverty, against 44.9 per cent for all people aged 65 and over. Some 28.2 per cent of disabled children were in poverty.

"This proves that with a disabled person in your family, poverty will be your number one concern," said lawmaker Dr Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung, who previously worked with the Society for Rehabilitation to do a survey on the same issue.

He called for a change in the rules for Comprehensive Social Security Assistance, the government's catch-all welfare programme, so disabled people could apply as individuals even if their household did not qualify.