Multidimensional Poverty and Disability of Older Adults in China: Will Long-Term Care Insurance Make a Difference?

Using data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), we assessed the degree of poverty and disability among the elderly by a multidimensional indicator system and estimated the effects of disability on the incidence, depth, and duration of poverty, as well as Long-term Care Insurance (LTCI)’s effectiveness on poverty alleviating. Our results revealed that there was a significant correlation between the degree of disability and multidimensional poverty; with increasing levels of disability, there was a corresponding increase in probability from non-poor to poor status, severity, and duration of multidimensional poverty. As a protective policy for elderly individuals with disabilities, LTCI did not reduce the degree of disability of the disabled elderly while significantly contributing to the substantive care services enjoyed by them and also was not effective in eradicating multidimensional poverty suffered by disabled elderly due to the combination of its crowding-out effect on intergenerational economic support and family care, and its limited ability to improve objective health. The findings have significant implications in poverty governance, health management, and improvement of life quality among older adults, as well as in the advancement of LTCI for policymakers and practitioners.