A Comprehensive Review of China's Smart Elderly Care Policies

Mingyu Jiang

1,*

and Zhuyan Jin

School of Health Sciences, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350122, China

School of Social Development, Tianjin University of Technology, Tianjin, 300110, China

Keywords: Smart Elderly Care, Chinese Smart Elderly Care, Elderly Care Policies.

Abstract: This study examines the evolution, implementation effectiveness, and optimization pathways of China's smart

elderly care policy framework from a policy analysis perspective. The findings reveal that China's smart

elderly care policies have undergone a paradigm shift from technology-driven to demand-oriented approaches,

forming a governance structure dominated by environmental and supply-side policy instruments. However,

structural imbalances in policy tools (demand-side tools account for only 12.4%) and regional disparities

(eastern regions' fiscal investments are 2.3 times those of western regions) constrain the maximization of

policy efficacy. International comparative studies highlight the significant positive externalities of smart

elderly care in promoting digital inclusion and social integration, yet challenges such as insufficient age-

friendly adaptations and fragmented service systems remain un-resolved. This review argues that constructing

a demand-responsive policy tool portfolio, im-proving regional coordination mechanisms, and strengthening

the synergy among technology, services, and institutional innovation are critical pathways for advancing of

the smart elderly care.

1 INTRODUCTION

With the accelerating aging of Chinese society,

elderly care has become a critical issue concerning

national welfare and livelihoods. According to the

National Bureau of Statistics, by the end of 2022,

China's population aged 60 and above had reached

280 million, accounting for 19.8% of the total

population, with those aged 65 and above comprising

14.9%, reflecting deepening aging trends (National

Bureau of Statistics, 2023). Concurrently, the aging

population exhibits pronounced trends of advanced

age, empty-nesting, and disability, posing significant

challenges to traditional family and social elderly care

models. Against the backdrop of rapid urbanization

and shrinking family structures, conventional elderly

care resources struggle to meet the growing demand

for diversified and personalized services.

Furthermore, long-standing issues such as uneven

resource allocation, inconsistent service quality, and

a shortage of professional caregivers exacerbate the

supply-demand imbalance in elderly care.

In this context, smart elderly a novel model

leveraging modern information technologies, has

Corresponding author

emerged as a pivotal solution. By integrating

technologies such as the Internet of Things big data,

cloud computing, and artificial intelligence (AI),

smart elderly care enables intelligent, precise, and

efficient services, offering multi-tiered and

comprehensive support, including health monitoring,

telemedicine, smart home systems, and emergency

assistance. In recent years, the Chinese government

has prioritized the development of smart elderly care,

issuing a series of policy documents such as the Smart

Health and Elderly Care Industry Development

Action Plan (2017–2020) (Ministry of Civil Affairs,

2017), the Guidelines on Promoting the Development

of Elderly Care Services (General Office of the State

Council, 2019), and the 14th Five-Year Plan for

National Aging Development and Elderly Care

Service Systems (State Council, 2022). These

policies provide a top-level design for smart elderly

care, outlining specific measures in technology

application, service innovation, funding,

standardization, and talent development, reflecting

the nation's systematic planning and strategic

deployment to address elderly care challenges.

Therefore, selecting China's smart elderly care

policies as the research focus holds significant

320

Jiang, M. and Jin, Z.

A Comprehensive Review of China’s Smart Elderly Care Policies.

DOI: 10.5220/0014373900004859

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Politics, Law, and Social Science (ICPLSS 2025), pages 320-324

ISBN: 978-989-758-785-6

practical relevance. First, these policies represent a

crucial response to the challenges of an aging society,

with their successful implementation directly

impacting the quality of life for millions of elderly

citizens and social stability. Second, the advancement

of smart elderly care policies involves multi-sector

collaboration and interdisciplinary integration,

making their design, implementation, and evaluation

highly valuable for research. Additionally, rapid

technological advancements and ongoing policy

refinements present new challenges, such as age-

friendly technology adaptation, data security, privacy

protection, and regional inequities, necessitating

systematic research to propose solutions.

This review aims to systematically analyze

China's smart elderly care policies, tracing their

developmental trajectory, core content, and

implementation outcomes, while identifying existing

challenges and offering recommendations for future

policy optimization mark. The study not only

enhances understanding of the current state of smart

elderly care policies but also provides valuable

insights for researchers, policymakers, and elderly

care service providers.

2 RESEARCH METHODS AND

PROCESS

Against the backdrop of an aging society, this study

focused on keywords such as "smart elderly care,"

"healthy aging industry," "age-friendly design," and

"smart health," supplemented by English terms like

"smart elderly care" and "elderly-care policy."

Databases including CNKI, CSSCI, Wanfang Data,

VIP, and Web of Science were utilized for literature

retrieval, with advanced search functions employed to

refine the selection process. The initial search yielded

approximately 5,000 journal articles, which were

narrowed down to 1,200 core papers after preliminary

screening. Further refinement using terms like "aging

society" and "social policy" resulted in 150 highly

relevant publications. The retained literature

primarily addressed smart elderly care from the

perspectives of policy instrument theory, regional

development, technological advancements, and

policy reviews, aiming to explore the policy practices

and technological pathways of smart elderly care

from multiple dimensions.

3 RESEARCH FINDINGS

3.1 Evolutionary Analysis of

Development Pathways

China's smart elderly care policies have undergone a

transformation from being "technology-driven" to

"demand-oriented." In 2013, the State Council first

introduced the concept of "smart elderly care" in the

Opinions on Accelerating the Development of the

Elderly Care Service Industry, which proposed

"developing home-based network information

services and encouraging local governments,

enterprises, and institutions to leverage internet and

IoT technologies to innovate home-based elderly care

models." The 2017 Action Plan established a tripartite

framework integrating "products, platforms, and

services," while the 2021 Action Plan further

emphasized technological convergence and scenario-

based innovation.

The concept of smart elderly care comprises two

key components: (1) the application of emerging

information technologies and (2) the integration of

multi-stakeholder resources (Huang, 2020). The

former primarily enhances traditional elderly care

systems by improving intelligence and

personalization, whereas the latter requires broader

socio-economic resources, including enterprise

participation and urban planning. The increasing

frequency of smart elderly care policies in

government documents reflects its evolution into a

nationally coordinated, locally supported initiative

(Zhang & Sunn, 2023). However, China's policy tools

for smart elderly care remain imbalanced, with

environmental (44.0%) and supply-side (43.6%) tools

dominating, while demand-side tools are

underutilized (12.4%). This disparity indicates a

stronger focus on industrial push and environmental

optimization, yet the lack of demand-side tools

weakens market pull, hindering holistic industry

development (Huang, 2020).

3.2 Development Status Under

Regional Imbalances

Supported by digital technologies and national

policies, China's provinces and cities have actively

explored smart elderly care models. By January 2022,

the country had established 634 pilot projects (Wu,

2022). However, regional disparities have led to

uneven implementation. Fiscal data from 2022 reveal

that per capita expenditure in eastern regions was 2.3

times that of western regions, directly affecting smart

A Comprehensive Review of China’s Smart Elderly Care Policies

321

device procurement and maintenance capabilities. In

East China, Shanghai exemplifies precision-oriented

smart elderly care through its "goal-setting → top-

down design → environment construction →

market development → public awareness" model,

leveraging robust digital infrastructure (Gao, 2021).

Zhejiang ’ s Wuzhen pioneered China ’ s first

"Internet +" smart elderly care base in 2015,

integrating individualized care and service interaction

into a comprehensive system (Wang, 2020).

For elderly care enterprises, localized tax

incentives have not consistently translated into R&D

investments, and the relationship between

government subsidies, R&D inputs, and corporate

performance remains ambiguous (Zhang, 2024).

Rural areas face more acute challenges, with

underdeveloped elderly care services and high costs

of smart products, necessitating long-term efforts to

bridge the urban-rural gap (Han, 2021; Dai et al.,

2021).

3.3 Insights from International

Practices

Globally, smart elderly care concepts such as "smart

communities" originated in Europe and the U.S. and

rapidly gained traction. The UK’s Life Trust Fund

first proposed smart elderly care, embedding modern

technologies into its "community care" model, driven

by elderly needs, government subsidies, and

regulatory frameworks (Lemlouma, 2013).

Singapore’s "Smart Nation Initiative" integrates

smart eldercare into sustainable urban development

(Woods, 2020). While China’s 2021 Action Plan

mirrors these approaches—promoting a "90-7-3"

model (90% home-based, 7% community-based, 3%

institutional care)—its vast aging population and

diverse demands necessitate localized adaptations,

particularly in scalable smart care technologies to

alleviate family burdens.

3.4 Implicit Social Value of Smart

Elderly Care

3.4.1 Bridging the Digital Divide and

Fostering Sustainable Economic

Growth

The Action Plan advocates for age-friendly smart

products, digital interface adaptations (e.g., "elderly

mode," voice interaction), and literacy programs

(e.g., "Silver Age Digital Literacy Initiative") to

enhance elderly inclusion in the digital society.

Singapore’s "Seniors Go Digital" program, featuring

tiered training and "digital ambassador" mentorship,

has upskilled 210,000 seniors (Zhang, 2024). Such

measures not only create economic opportunities but

also prioritize elderly-centric design, embedding age-

friendly principles into policymaking and product

development (Meng et al., 2018).

3.4.2 Mitigating Loneliness and Enhancing

Intergenerational Harmony

As a social medium, the internet expands elderly

social networks, mitigates isolation, and fosters

community engagement (Cotten, 2013). Digital

empowerment improves psychological well-being

and family ties (Tseng W.S.W. et al., 2019), while

offline support systems amplify life satisfaction (Wu

Lin, 2020). Policy-driven innovations in remote

monitoring and smart care (Beard, 2010) further

reduce familial caregiving burdens, promoting

intergenerational harmony (Quanzel, 2020).

4 DISCUSSION

4.1 Key Contributions of the Study

Existing research has systematically delineated the

evolutionary trajectory of China's smart elderly care

policies, including the conceptual inception in 2013,

the establishment of the "product-platform-service"

framework in 2017, and the deepened technological

integration in the 2021 Action Plan. These studies

elucidate the policy's shift from a "technology-

driven" to a "demand-oriented" paradigm, offering

theoretical foundations for top-level design. Through

policy instrument analysis (e.g., coercive vs.

incentive-based tools), regional needs and gaps are

clearly identified, enabling targeted policy

recommendations. Pilot programs and regional

economic development have catalyzed localized

advancements in smart elderly care, serving as

precursors to nationwide implementation.

Additionally, comparative studies of developed and

welfare-state models (e.g., the UK and Singapore)

provide valuable methodological insights.

4.2 Limitations

Current research predominantly relies on traditional

public policy theories, functioning as ancillary to

broader policy agendas, and lacks indigenous

theoretical frameworks tailored to the complexities of

smart elderly care. For instance, the interplay among

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"technology-institution-culture" remains

underexplored, with no theory yet proposed to align

with China's unique aging demographics. Moreover,

most literature employs cross-sectional analyses (e.g.,

policy text quantification, regional comparisons),

neglecting longitudinal assessments of policy

efficacy—such as the sustained performance of

demonstration projects or dynamic changes in elderly

digital literacy. This gap obscures the mechanisms

underlying policy attenuation or enhancement.

5 CONCLUSION

This study conducts a systematic review and analysis

of China's smart elderly care policies, delineating

their evolutionary trajectory, core components,

implementation outcomes, and existing challenges.

The findings reveal that China's smart elderly care

policies have undergone a paradigm shift from being

"technology-driven" to "demand-oriented,"

progressively establishing a tripartite framework

integrating "products, platforms, and services." A

series of policy documents, including the Action Plan

for the Development of Smart Health and Elderly

Care Industries, have articulated specific measures on

technological application, service model innovation,

financial support, standardization, and talent

development.

Despite notable achievements in advancing the

smart elderly care industry, several critical issues

persist: regional disparities, insufficient utilization of

demand-side policy tools, and lagging development

in rural areas. Regional imbalance stands out as a

primary challenge in policy implementation. While

eastern regions, benefiting from stronger economic

capabilities and advanced digital infrastructure, lead

in smart elderly care adoption, central and western

regions face significant hurdles due to inadequate

fiscal investment and technological deficiencies.

Moreover, the scarcity of demand-side policy tools

has resulted in insufficient market traction, hindering

comprehensive industry growth. The development of

smart elderly care in rural areas remains an arduous

task, necessitating policy (targeted interventions) and

technological innovations to address resource

shortages and service inadequacies.

International experiences offer valuable insights

for China's smart elderly care development. Countries

such as the United Kingdom and Singapore have

successfully integrated modern information

technologies into elderly care services through

community-based smart care initiatives and smart

city programs, thereby enhancing the quality of life

and social participation of older adults. These cases

underscore that smart elderly care is not merely a

technological issue but also a societal one, requiring

collaborative efforts among governments,

enterprises, and civil society.In conclusion, the

evolution and development of China's smart elderly

care policies demonstrate the nation's strategic

planning and innovative approaches in addressing the

challenges posed by an aging society. Future policy

optimization should focus on: (1) enhancing regional

coordinated development, (2) improving demand-

side policy instruments, (3) promoting age-friendly

technological innovation, and (4) drawing upon

international best practices, with the aim of achieving

comprehensive development and widespread

application of smart elderly care. Through policy

refinement and technological advancement, smart

elderly care is expected to play an increasingly

significant role in tackling aging-related challenges,

improving quality of life for older adults, and

fostering intergenerational harmony, thereby

providing a solid foundation for realizing the national

objective of "ensuring that the elderly are properly

cared for, well-supported, and able to enjoy their later

years.

AUTHORS CONTRIBUTION

All the authors contributed equally and their names

were listed in alphabetical order.

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