By Theresa Tan

THE Housing Board will continue building 30-year lease studio apartments reserved for seniors, as such compact and affordable units have proved popular with older Singaporeans.

The HDB will launch 'a few hundred' studio apartments each year in different estates, and not just in mature ones, said Mr Yap Chin Beng, HDB's director of estate administration and property department, at a forum on ageing yesterday.

The forum, organised by the Tsao Foundation, looked at the challenges and possible solutions in housing and other issues facing Asia's ageing population.

ElderShield under review

THE Government is studying the cost of long-term care for the elderly, as the national disability insurance scheme, ElderShield, may not pay out enough for elders to afford adequate care.

Mr Lim Boon Heng, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, said this when he addressed a Tsao Foundation forum on ageing in Asia yesterday.

Mr Lim, who highlighted various services caring for the elderly, said: 'I'm keen to help Singaporeans be adequately prepared for the potential colossal cost of long-term care. Long-term care insurance, however, can become an uncontrollably growing beast, if it is not structured right.'

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