Section 57C. The department, with the co-operation of local boards of health, hospitals, dispensaries or other agencies shall establish and maintain clinics for the aging in such parts of the commonwealth as it may deem most advantageous to the public health and may otherwise provide services and treatment for aging citizens subject to such rules and regulations as the department may from time to time establish. For the purposes of this section, ”services and treatment” shall include transportation, or the reasonable cost of such transportation, to and from the place where treatment is given whenever the patient is not able to pay for such transportation.