Health care expenditures for the elderly and reforms in the health care system in Japan.
In recent times, significant reforms have been instituted in Japan's health care system, such as the introduction of hospital categorization and the clarification of hospital roles, together with the establishment of geriatric health care facilities, and the reform of the pharmaceutical distribution and pricing system. These reforms are expected to improve the efficiency and quality of the health care system in Japan and to provide better care for the aging society. The changes will also eventually affect health care costs and patterns of services. This paper describes Japan's health care system, including the recent reforms, and then examines the costs and patterns of health care services for the elderly in the light of the recent changes in the system. While more resource allocation is necessary for training of workers for nursing, rehabilitation and care-giving, drugs should be more cost-effective and fit for use at home and in non-medically oriented institutions. Health care providers, health care industries and the government need further to properly respond to the changes in demography, patterns of diseases and disabilities and patients' wishes for better quality of life.
Kobayashi
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Department of Public Health, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
D000368:Aged; D003361:Cost Allocation; D003625:Data Collection; D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D018166:Health Care Reform / Q000191:economics*; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006699:Home Care Services; D006761:Hospitals / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009735:Nursing Homes