Poor families, especially in rural India, have stronger intergenerational support systems and are more likely to provide elderly care than middle class families. In a lecture at the 'International Conference on Ageing Well – Management and Social Challenges' in Kumala, India, Sarah Harper remarked that: “Children of the middle class are having good education and are now settling in cities and they leave behind their elderly parents to fend for themselves. This care means financial support and practical help. In contrast, the poor families are together but don’t have the wherewithal to look after their elderly” “While England has the fully free National Healthcare System (NHS), Australia and Canada have health insurance contributory scheme. The US has a special health care to support the elderly. In contrast, Japan and Korea have family support system but India is neither here nor there. West doesn’t have a strong family system” In the current circumstances, the ideal model for India can be a private insurance scheme for the middle and upper class and a public-funded scheme for the poor, Harper sayd. > Read full Deccan Chronicle article
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