BEIJING, April 1 (Xinhua) -- China saw improved elderly care system, with 163,800 elderly care institutions and facilities offering 7.46 million beds for senior citizens as of the end of 2018.

With China's population aging, civil affairs authorities have been implementing a raft of measures to accelerate the development of the elderly care service industry, including fully opening the elderly care market by 2020.

As of the end of 2018, 48 percent of the country's elderly care institutions were privately-run.

China has also introduced pilot projects of reforming public elderly care institutions, scaling up the home- and community-based old-age care system, and integrating medical and nursing services for the elderly.

As of the end of 2018, community-based elderly care institutions were available in all urban communities and more than 50 percent of rural communities.