Tibet has about 1,800 monasteries and nunneries including the famous Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery, and over 46,000 monks and nuns. Traditionally, the clergies focus on religious cultivation above the common customs and rarely care about material life. It seems that only ascetic practice can be the Buddhist practice.

However, one may not know that Tibetan clergies have been covered by the social insurance system like other common Chinese citizens.
"A monk called me the other day, happily telling me that the autonomous region has promulgated an insurance policy, life accident insurance, which is free and in future if I fell off from a motocycle, I would get insurance." said Amei, a deputy to the 18th National Congress of the CPC.

It owes to the Interim Measures of Covering Clergies into the Social Insurance System carried out early this year. Besides the life accident insurance mentioned above, the clergies over 18 years old can participate in the social old-age and medical care for urban and rural citizens at local place. With constant payment of over 15 years, they can draw old-age pension after they turn 60 years old. The annual payment of medic-care for clergy is 280 yuan. Every clergy needs to pay 60 yuan only, and the rest 220 yuan will be paid by governmental financial subsidy at all levels.

In the past, as Amei said, the clergy relied on the temple's income and religious people's donation to go to see a doctor and live his or her old-age life. Some clergies would even choose to stay in the temple and do nothing with the illness because of the economic trouble.

"But now, they can call us when they feel ill and let us arrange doctors and hospitals for them. They can focus on their religious cultivation without worrying about the livelihood," said Amei.

In fact, the system of subsistence allowances exclusively for clergies has already been implemented, it will be expended to cover more clergies this year. At present, the monthly subsistence allowance for each clergy is 400 yuan. If the temple can not afford, the rest will be covered by the government to make 400 yuan for each person.