Special Feature What Suwon City Does - 7: Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone)

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Jung Jun-seong] No matter how carefully welfare systems are constructed, there remain care gaps that cannot be filled. Suwon Special City prepared a comprehensive care project in which community is at the center, discovering neighbors in need of care and resolving care shortages. The result is Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone).

Suwon Saebit Care is a policy that provides customized comprehensive care services to all citizens in need of care. It is a carefully designed care policy that enables anyone who needs help but previously fell outside the care service system to receive care.

Resolving Care Gaps...Establishing Itself as a Life-Integrated Care Policy

In July 2023, pilot operations began in 8 districts, and from January 2024, it expanded to all 44 districts. Now in its fourth year since launch, Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone) has played a major role in resolving care gaps and established itself as a life-integrated care policy.

At its launch, it provided services in 4 major areas and 11 types including home care services, accompaniment support, psychological counseling, and temporary protection, but services have been continuously expanded. Currently, it has expanded to 16 types of services across 8 major areas: △living care △accompaniment care △housing safety △meal support △temporary protection △rehabilitation care △psychological counseling △home medical care.

It provides practical assistance to citizens in need of care, including household activity support, hospital accompaniment, consumable replacement and minor repairs, major cleaning, regular and porridge meal provision, short-term protection, customized exercise rehabilitation, and counseling for adults, children, and youth. It encompasses support for daily living activities as well as health and emotional care.

Significantly Expanding Saebit Care Service Support Criteria and Support Limits

The city has significantly expanded the support criteria and limits for Saebit care services from 2025 so that any citizen can use them. The name was also changed to 'Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone)'.

The criteria for care service cost support has expanded from households with 75% or less of median income to 120% or less, and the support amount has increased from 1 million won per person annually to 1.5 million won annually. For national merit claimants, full costs are supported regardless of income.

Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone) services continue to expand. Last July, the 'elementary school lower-grade school commute accompaniment care service,' a resident-proposed service, began pilot operations in 10 districts, and by November expanded to all 44 districts.

The elementary school lower-grade school commute accompaniment care, which began with resident proposals, is a service in which a Saebit caregiver accompanies elementary school first and second-grade children during commute when guardians unexpectedly face difficulties enabling them to accompany their children to and from school. Chiefs of residents' groups and members of community social security councils, who are well-acquainted with local characteristics and have rich experience in activities, serve as caregivers.

Last Year's Service Usage Increased 353% Compared to Previous Year

The number of citizens using Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone) services continues to grow. Last year, a total of 5,193 people used 120,588 care service instances. Compared to 2024, applications for Saebit care services increased by 142%, and service usage instances increased by 353%.

The 8 basic services provided 120,030 service instances to 5,004 people, and the 'elementary school lower-grade school commute accompaniment care service,' a resident-proposed project, provided 478 service instances to 19 people. The 'pregnant woman care community building and household support service,' a citizen-participation project, provided services to 170 pregnant women.

This year, the city is strengthening the key advantage of Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone), which is the 'gap-filling care function that rapidly addresses urgent and temporary care shortages,' and is advancing policies to organically connect services with medical, long-term care, and living care.

Strengthening Gap-Filling Care Function and Advancing Services

This year's four main goals for Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone) are: △strengthening universal care safety nets accessible to all citizens △enhancing gap-filling care functions focused on emergencies and gaps △establishing a performance indicator-based policy effect management system △establishing an integrated support system through linkage of medical, long-term care, and living care.

First, to transition to a sustainable care usage structure, the city is expanding co-payment participation services and activating citizen participation and resident-proposed care.

In addition, to establish living area care hubs and strengthen regional cooperation, the city operates 'Neighborhood Care Centers,' living area care hubs. Plans include collaborating with religious organizations to utilize vacant spaces with good resident accessibility, such as religious facilities, as hub spaces.

In April, the city established a 2026 Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone) performance management system. The performance indicators consist of a total of 13 indicators: 4 policy indicators and 9 management indicators. Based on operational data from the past three years, the city plans to set realistic targets and advance the performance analysis system by actively utilizing platforms and existing satisfaction survey data.

Furthermore, the city is building a one-stop linkage system based on Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone) and expanding the linkage of medical, long-term care, and living care services.

A city official said, "By advancing Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone), we will build a more comprehensive social safety net and provide customized care services to all citizens," and added, "We will continue to discover services that are practically helpful to citizens."

Meanwhile, Suwon Saebit Care (For Everyone) services can be applied for at dedicated care windows in 44 district administrative welfare centers and through the Saebit Talk-Talk app. A care planner is assigned on the day of application, and services are connected within 7 days (within 3 days in urgent cases).