A community member of staff checks a senior citizen's freego card. [Photo/ntfabu.com]

In the face of the recent severity of the COVID-19 pandemic in China, many public places in the urban area of Nantong – the prefecture-level city located in East China's Jiangsu province – have taken stricter prevention measures, making a health code and a digital travel record necessary when people go out.

However, many senior citizens' inability to use smart phones has resulted in restrictions to their travel.

To solve the problem, several sub-districts in Chongchuan district – the main urban area of Nantong – have acted to help them go out and get around more easily.

Guanhe Huafu – a resettlement community located in the Chongchuan Economic Development Zone, or CCEDZ – rolled out the freego card. With the card, senior citizens can freely get in and out of not only the residential community but also the surrounding markets, clinics and pharmacies.

A member of staff of the Xinsheng community, under the jurisdiction of the CCEDZ, helps out some seniors with their freego card. [Photo/ntfabu.com]

"There are more than 2,000 households with more than 5,000 permanent residents in Guanhe Huafu. More than half of them are elderly and half of the elderly are unable to use smart phones," said Feng Haiyong, Party secretary of Xinsheng community.

At the beginning of stricter management of the community, many senior citizens had difficulties working out how to access their health codes and digital travel records.

Xinsheng community followed suit and also launched the freego card. The cards will be issued to the elderly after their two records are checked by their children or the community.

The children of the elderly who do not live in the area under the administration of Xinsheng community can get a companion card, which makes it convenient for them to visit their folks.

Each week, the senior citizens and their children will update their cards, after the health codes and digital travel records are checked by the community.