福利多元主义视角下的老年助餐服务研究——基于A市的实践探索

Research on Elderly Meal Services from Welfare Pluralism Perspective——A Case Study in A City

随着老龄化进程加快,传统老年照料模式已难以满足日益增长的养老需求,我国面临“老何所依”“老何所养”等挑战。老年助餐服务是当前最迫切的养老服务需求之一,如何提升老年助餐服务供给质量、增进老年人福祉成为积极应对人口老龄化国家战略的重大课题和重点内容。以A市老年助餐配餐服务为个案,借鉴福利多元主义理论,构建包括规划、筹资、供给、规制四个维度和国家、市场、社会、个人四个主体的整体分析框架,对老年助餐服务进行解剖式观察。研究发现,地方政府从政策规划、筹资安排、供给方式和监督机制等方面为助餐配餐服务提供了具体可行的政策实施环境,但同时存在行政主导的服务规划、层级倒挂的筹资安排、竞争不足的供给环境和社会缺位的监督机制等制度建设上的不足,制约了助餐配餐服务的可持续发展。对此,政府需要承担起基本养老服务规划、筹资、供给以及规制等主体责任,通过规范建设为多元主体提供良好的制度环境,真正发挥不同治理主体的比较优势,提升养老服务供给效能。

The growing demand for elderly care services has become one of the biggest challenges in China since the traditional elderly-care model has been unable to meet the actual needs as aging population rises.Meal services have become common needs for the elderly.How to improve the quality of elderly meal services and improve their well-being has become a major issue to implement the national strategy to address population aging.From the perspective of welfare pluralism,the article develops an integrated analysis framework of four dimensions(planning,provision,finance and regulation)and four subjects(state,market,society and individual),and conducts a case study of elderly meal services in A city.Results show that the local government provides a specific and feasible policy implementation environment for elderly meal services from the aspects of policy planning,financing arrangement,supply mode and regulation mechanism.But at the same time,there are deficiencies in the policy construction such as administrative-led service planning,inverted financing arrangement,insuficient competition supply environment and lack of social regulation mechanism,which restricts the sustainable development of elderly meal services.Future development of elderly meal services needs government's supports to improve institutional environment and facilitate social capital in the provision of elderly care services.