Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan ppt

Service guide (English)
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
of Japan
For people, for life,
for the future
Live with safety and security
Work with a purpose in life
Support each citizen’s life
For people, for life,
for the future
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare addresses various challenges so that
each citizen can live a fulfilling life through their lifetime. As the country with the
highest life expectancy in the world, Japan should create a world-class model of
the society with declining birthrate and aging population. The Ministry aims to
create a country in which both men and women can continue working to any age
if they wish, raise children with peace of mind, and live a healthy, longer life in
their community.
We believe that the happiness of each citizen will invigorate Japan in the future.
To achieve this, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare will provide detailed
support for people’s lives.
Profile
Bureaus and Departments
Review of Fiscal 2011
Organization Chart
老 健 局
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
3 4
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
Supporting Various Scenes in Life
Health, labour, and welfare administration is directly concerned with

people’s lives.
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare supports life at every stage
of your birth, your own life, and the generation transition.
Health, labour, and welfare administration is for the lifelong security of
the people in Japan.
Food safety
Social welfare
and relief
assistance
Insurance
systems
Support for
persons with
disabilities
Medical care
and drugs
Promotion
of health
Support
throughout life
• Maternal and child health
(medical care for premature infants)
• Health checkups for infants
• Measures for fertility treatment
• Vaccination
• Provision of various health services
• Provision of child allowances
• Prevention of child abuse
• After-school children’s clubs
• Maternity and childcare leaves

• Support for life with a balance between work and
family
• Health checkups for pregnant women and
issuance of maternal and child health handbooks
• Support for re-employment
• Securing employment of people until they become
65 years old using their knowledge and experience
• Promotion of various employment styles and
people’s participation in society
• Provision of pension benefits
• Provision of long-term care
services using the long-term
care insurance system
• Ensuring appropriate working conditions
• Development of a safe and healthy working
environment
• Compensation of industrial accidents
• Lifestyles with a good work-life balance
• Job-placement support for the unemployed
• Support for career development
• Securing equal employment opportunity for men
and women
• Employment measures for
young people
• Obligation to join the pension
system
Infants
Children
Marriage and childbirth
Retirement

Students
Adults
Post-retirement
Ministry of Health, Labour and WelfareMinistry of Health, Labour and Welfare
5 6
Services of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (Abstract)
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare designs and implements social systems and structures
that are closely related to people’s lives throughout their lifetime and entire life cycle.
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare covers a wide range of areas from medical care to
employment and childcare support and each bureau/department of the Ministry serves “for people,
for life, and for the future” on a daily basis.
Services of the Ministry of Health,
Labour and Welfare (Abstract)
Protecting people’s
lives
Developing a safe
working environment
Supporting people’s
daily lives
Minister’s Secretariat
Director-General for
Policy Planning
and Evaluation
Equal Employment,
Children and Families Bureau
Health Insurance
Bureau
Social Welfare and War
Victims’ Relief Bureau
Health Policy Bureau

Health Service Bureau
Pharmaceutical and
Food Safety Bureau
Labour Standards Bureau
Human Resources
Development Bureau
Employment
Security Bureau
Pension Bureau
Health and Welfare
Bureau for the Elderly
Infants
Infants
Life
Life
Life
Life
Life
Life
Children Adults
Adults
Adults
Adults
Students Retirement
Marriage and childbirth
Post-retirement
Post-retirement
MinistryofHealth,LabourandWelfare MinistryofHealth,LabourandWelfare
7 8
International development of the health,

labour, and welfare administration
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Minister’s Secretariat
The helm of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
The Minister’s Secretariat integrates health, labour, and
welfare administration and coordinates general affairs
including the establishment, revision, and abolishment of
laws and regulations, budget compilation, organization and
personnel management, etc. The Minister’s Secretariat also
plays a role as the representative and liaison of the entire
Ministry concerning the Diet, other government ministries
and agencies, mass media, and the public.
Review of law and regulation drafts
Administrative activities are conducted based
on laws and regulations. Establishment of laws
and regulations (legislation, cabinet orders,
ministerial orders, etc.) is therefore essential in
order to put planned policies into effect. The
Minister’s Secretariat reviews laws and
regulations, which were made by bureaus and
departments within the Ministry, to check
whether policies are prescribed logically and
clearly in the letter.
Budget
Management and supervision of
regional bureaus
Dissemination of health, labour, and welfare administration to
the world
 In recent years, the trend in the international

community has become linked to domestic
policies in many areas of health, labour, and
welfare administration. The International Affairs
Division, the Minister’s Secretariat, is involved in
the international development of the health,
labour, and welfare administration through
international organization activities, international
economic negotiations, policy dialogues with
developed and other Asian countries, technical
cooperation with developing countries, and
amassing overseas information, etc.
The expenditure budget of general account of
the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in
fiscal 2012 is approximately 26.7 trillion yen (in
addition, approximately 2.5 trillion yen of
government bonds for pension funds). The
budget is estimated based on the amount
needed for social security including medical
care, pension, long-term care, employment, and
welfare, which are closely related to various
scenes of people’s lives.
Among Japan’s entire general account budget
in fiscal 2012 (approximately 90.3 trillion yen),
general expenditures (policy expenditures
excluding debt servicing costs and local
allocation tax grants) are approximately 51.2
trillion yen. The Ministry’s budget in the total
general expenditures accounts for 52.1%, which
is increasing year by year. Policymaking of the
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare therefore

has a significant effect on the budget
compilation of the entire government.
The social security-related expenditures for
medical care, pension, and long-term care are
expected to increase in conjunction with the
growth of aging population. In order to
implement necessary measures in an efficient
and effective manner, the Minister’s Secretariat
reviews the necessity of budget, etc. for each
project and compiles the budget of the Ministry
of Health, Labour and Welfare.
Personnel Division
Finance Division
International Affairs
Division
General Coordination
Division
Regional Bureau
Administration Division
Health Sciences Division
Regional bureaus of the Ministry of Health,
Labour and Welfare include Prefectural Labour
Bureaus (Labour Standards Inspection Offices,
Hello Works, and Equal Employment Offices) in
47 prefectures and Regional Bureaus of Health
and Welfare (branch offices) in 8 prefectures.
The Prefectural Labour Bureaus implements
labour standards, and secures employment
security and equal employment administrations in
a comprehensive and community-based manner

as regionally based general labour administration
agencies.
Meanwhile the Regional Bureaus of Health and
Welfare play the role of ensuring the safety and
security of people’s daily lives, improving their
welfare, and maintaining and appropriately
implementing the social security systems, which
includes providing guidance to and inspecting
insurance based medical institutions, supervision
of health insurance societies and employees’
pension funds, and various health and welfare
related approvals and authorizations, etc., in
locations that are close to citizens. In addition,
the bureaus are also responsible for the
regulation of narcotics and stimulants.
The Regional Bureau Administration Division
manages the budget and the number of
personnel of these regional bureaus and provides
comprehensive supervision with respect to their
compliance with laws and ordinances, etc.
The number of individual disputes (over
dismissal, conversion of work-position, wage
cuts, bullying, etc.) between employees and
employers (individual labour-related disputes)
has been increasing in recent years, as economic
situation changes. In order to promote the
resolution of these disputes, the Act on Promoting
the Resolution of Individual Labour-Related
Disputes was established. The following services
are provided to promote the prompt and

appropriate resolution of disputes: (1) provision of
information and counseling at 300 General
Counseling Corners nationwide, (2) provision of
advice and guidance by the chief of the
Prefectural Labour Bureau, and (3) mediation by
Dispute Coordinating Committees.
International Affairs
Division
In order to maintain people’s health and
stability in their lives the Ministry of Health,
Labour and Welfare actively takes part in
negotiations with international organizations that
include the World Health Organization (WHO)
and International Labour Organization (ILO) as
well as being involved in bilateral discussions.
 Many countries are facing an unprecedented
declining birthrate and aging population. The
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is in
charge of medical care, pension and long-term
care administration and is therefore responsible
for addressing this issue by sharing ideas
concerning the direction of policies and system
planning with other countries in the world.
 Moreover, there are increasing opportunities
in which Japan should contribute to the
improvement of the welfare of the world using its
experiences in the areas of social security and
employment. Japan is required to transmit
information and contribute to the world including
developing countries using its technology and

know-how. Building a sense of “security” in
people’s lives is a common major goal of the
world.
 In this context, there have been a
dramatically increasing number of opportunities
for international talks and cooperation as well as
cooperation activities for developing countries, in
which the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
should participate.
China-Japan-Korea Ministerial Meeting on Health
(China, November 13, 2011)
Through various channels
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
manages international affairs through various
channels. The main affairs include the
participation in activities such as taking measures
for infectious diseases and food safety (by WHO),
setting up and monitoring decent work (work
worth doing with human dignity) and international
labour standards (in cooperation with ILO), and
comparison and analysis of systems (by the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD)). It is important to use the
great power of such international organizations to
create a trend in the world.
Hard negotiations are taking place toward
Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) in the
area of health, labour, and welfare administration
including the “movement of natural persons”
(nurses, certified care workers, etc.). For Japan’s

national interests, the Ministry is also engaging in
bilateral talks with Western and Asian countries
including China, which involve issues concerning
regulations in the areas of drug and food.
 Besides this, the Ministry supports the
development of personnel and systems in
developing countries in the areas of health and
medical care, social welfare, labour, and
waterworks by dispatching experts from Japan
and accepting trainees from these countries.
 In order to implement such various
international policies, the Ministry of Health,
Labour and Welfare dispatches officials to
international organizations, Japanese diplomatic
offices, etc. in over 20 countries, who are active
on the diplomatic front. The knowledge and
experience of the Ministry of Health, Labour and
Welfare are now linked to overseas countries and
Japan’s health, labour, and welfare administration
should be disseminated to the world.
International Labour Conference (June 2011)
© International Labour Organization
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
9 10
Bureaus and Departments
Minister’s Secretariat
Bureaus and Departments
Health Sciences Division
Promotion of health and labour science and
responses to people’s health risks

The responsibilities of the Ministry of Health,
Labour and Welfare are to promote and
disseminate science and technology in the area
of health, labour, and welfare in order to ensure
good health and high quality of life with safety
and comfort, and to safeguard people’s daily
lives by promptly taking measures against the
threats to people’s health. In order to accomplish
these missions, the Ministry of Health, Labour
and Welfare conducts overall planning and
coordination of science and technology matters
within the Ministry.
Various administrative policies implemented
by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare,
including health and medical care, welfare,
environmental health, and industrial safety and
health, should be based on scientific basis.
By promoting research on health, labour, and
welfare administration, the Ministry supports
health, labour, and welfare administration in a
theoretical and scientific manner in order to
develop appropriate rules.
In particular, the development of technologies
in health area such as medical care and
long-term care is expected to be one of the
main pillars that support the nation’s economic
growth. The Ministry aims to raise the level of
technology by promoting research activities in
order to improve people’s health.
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare

promotes health and labour science in order to
eliminate concerns about health and safety and
ensure the good health and quality of life of the
people in safety and comfort and according to
their diverse needs.
More concretely, the measures include the
following main pillars:
■ Reconstruction/recovery and improvement
of safety from disasters
■ Life innovations (described below)
■ Responses to other important matters,
including the development of therapeutic
drugs for intractable diseases and hepatitis
B, etc.
In addition, the Ministry also formulates
various guidelines to be followed by researchers
as ethical guidelines when conducting human
genome/genetic analysis and epidemiologic
studies, etc.
Health, labour, and welfare
administration and science
Promotion of health and labour science
Promotion of life innovations
Health emergency preparedness and
response
In consideration of the New Growth Strategy
and comprehensive social security and tax the
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare promotes
the development and practical application of
therapies, etc. and international-level clinical

research for diseases with high needs, including
intractable diseases and cancer. Through these
efforts the Ministry promotes life innovations that
also aim to achieve economic growth through
the establishment of a longevity society with a
healthy population and the strengthening of
global competitiveness by the creation of
innovative drugs and medical devices, etc.
It is impossible to predict the occurrence of
risks that threaten people’s lives and health such
as new infectious diseases including pandemic
influenza and large-scale health hazards caused
by drinking water and food.
In order to take every possible measure to
address these risks, the Health Sciences Division
conducts the management and coordination of
the system for initial responses of the Ministry of
Health, Labour and Welfare regarding the
prevention, precaution of the spread, and medical
treatment of health hazards.
 After the occurrence of the Fukushima Daiichi
Nuclear Power Plant accident in 2011 the Health
Sciences Division conducted the management
and coordination of the system used in the
various initial responses of the Ministry.
 List of recent domestic incidents concerning health
risk management
1995
1996
1998

1999
2000
2001
2002
2004
2005: April
2007: July
2008
2009
2011: March
Statistics and Information Department
Statistics and IT that support health, labour, and welfare administration
The Statistics and Information Department implements key
statistical surveys on demographics, households, health, social
welfare, employment, wages, and working hours, etc. that form
the basis of the health, labour, and welfare administration. The
Ministry is also promoting the informatization of their
administration through IT (information and communication
technologies) utilization in order to improve its convenience for
the people and to simplify, speedup, and improve the accuracy
of administrative operations, etc.
Statistics are important for people
Promotion of e-Government
Public statistics developed by administrative
agencies are deemed as “important information
that is a basis of rational decision-making for
people.” They are used as important indices that
support rational decision-making by business
entities and individuals in relation to economic
actions and the society and as basic materials for

policy evaluation. These statistics are also
essential for academic research and mutual
understanding in the international community.
Public statistics can be used not only for
individual administration purpose but for a wide
variety of entities in the society in an effective way.
To achieve this, the “Basic Plan Concerning the
Development of Official Statistics” was formulated,
and the whole government is making a structured
approach for the improvement of statistics in a
comprehensive and systematic manner. The
Statistics and Information Department has the
central role in managing statistical issues in the
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and
conducts statistical surveys including seven
fundamental statistics that are defined especially
important in planning and implementing policies
and approximately 30 other statistical surveys
(approx. 100 statistical surveys are conducted in
the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare). All of
these statistics are the basic materials of health,
labour, and welfare
administration.
The Department
is also making
efforts to meet new
statistical demands,
which includes
commissioning
statistics production

and provision of
anonymous data
that is obtained by
processing
individual data to
prevent it from
being identified.
IT utilization by administrations is essential
nowadays in improving people’s convenience and
making administrative work more efficient. The entire
government aims at the realization of being a top
international level electronic administrative nation
based on the “Basic Policy on the Promotion of
e-Government” and the “Action Plan for Expanding
On-Line Use.” This, however, requires the
establishment and operation of efficient and safe
information systems.
In order to promote the informatization of
administrations within the Ministry of Health, Labour
and Welfare the Statistics and Information
Department is responsible for the general
coordination within the Ministry with respect to the
informatization of administrative matters, and the
planning and development of the necessary
information systems. The department contributes to
improving the quality of the online
applications/notifications used in the social insurance
and labour insurance procedures, promoting the
optimization of work and systems in thereby ensuring
the efficiency of the time and cost of work processes

within the existing systems of the Ministry, and
implementing information security measures within
the Ministry. The department also establishes and
operates internal LAN systems used to share and
exchange information within the Ministry, along with
the information systems that are the basis of
information being provided and
applications/notifications accepted through an
integrated network which is connected with regional
bureaus and the internet.
The Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake;
Tokyo subway sarin attack
O-157 food poisoning in Sakai City, Osaka
Curry poisoning incident in Wakayama City
Tokaimura Nuclear Accident
Eruption of Mt. Usu;
Food poisoning of dairy products by Snow Brand Milk Products;
Eruption of Miyakejima volcano
Akashi fireworks incident, Hyogo
Outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)
Powerful typhoon (typhoon No. 23);
Niigata Chuetsu Earthquake;
Sugihiratake mushroom encephalopathy
JR Fukuchiyama Line Amagasaki Rail Crash
Niigata Chuetsu-oki Earthquake
Poison dumplings from China, etc.
Pandemic Influenza (A/H1N1)
Great East Japan Earthquake;
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident
Policy Planning

Division
Employment, Wage and Labour
Welfare Statistics Division
Vital, Health and Social
Statistics Division
Information System
Division
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
11 12
老 健 局
Key Word
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Health Policy Bureau
For the provision of safe and high-quality medical services
With its universal health insurance system and free access,
the medical care provision system in Japan has enabled
Japan’s average life expectancy to reach the highest level in
the world, and the system has received high acclaim for it.
On the other hand, circumstances surrounding medical care
have been changing significantly such as the rapid progress
of the declining birthrate and aging population, the advance-
ment of medical technology and changes in people’s aware-
ness about medical care. As a result, rebuilding a medical
care provision system has become the key issue.
General Affairs
Division
Life
Rebuilding the medical care provision
system

When compared with other major developed
countries the medical care provision system in
Japan can be characterized by the large per capita
number of beds and the long average number of
days of hospital stays. In order to facilitate the
smooth discharge and return to home of patients
after hospitalization and provide support for their
recovery stage with limited medical resources the
reinforcement and division of hospital and hospital
bed functions needs to be promoted.
With the aim of rebuilding the medical care
provision system, the Health Policy Bureau is the
promoting division of hospitals and hospital bed
functions via medical fees and is securing a system
that can provide the necessary medical care in a
seamless manner throughout regions based on a
“Medical Care Plan” formulated by the respective
prefecture and according to the actual regional
situation.
Responses to the shortage of doctors
As for the problem concerning the shortage of
doctors, it is pointed out that besides the shortage
in the absolute numbers, the number of doctors in
mountainous and rural areas is less than that in
urban areas, and the number of emergency
physicians, obstetricians/gynecologists, and
pediatricians is less than that of doctors in other
departments.
In response, the Health Policy Bureau has been
taking measures to secure doctors through

increasing the enrollment of medical university
every school year since fiscal 2007 (and in fiscal
2012 to a record high level). In addition, the Bureau
provides financial incentive to doctors who receive
clinical resident training in remote areas, and for
benefits to emergency physicians, obstetricians etc.
Moreover, the Bureau promotes further measures
including support for the establishment of “regional
medical care support centers” that can be a “control
tower” for the efforts of prefectures to balance the
number of doctors in each region.
Establishment of Emergency/Perinatal
Care Systems
As a result of the increase in the number of people
who are taken to hospital by ambulance and the
shortage of doctors due to overworking, there have
been cases where it took a long time to find a hospital
that could accept patients and expectant mothers
during ambulance transport. This has become a social
problem and has raised concerns about
emergency/perinatal care systems.
Under these circumstances, the Health Policy
Bureau aims to improve emergency/perinatal care
systems, firstly, by providing financial support to
emergency medical centers that accept severely ill
patients around the clock and comprehensive
perinatal maternal medical centers that are the center
of perinatal care. Secondly, the bureau established a
nighttime telephone counseling system in which
parents of pediatric patients can consult with local

pediatricians in order to supplement the pediatric
emergency care system. The Bureau is also working
to expand the use of “doctor helicopters” that send
doctors to rural areas and remote islands to provide
treatment at early stage.
Activities of medical teams in the disaster-stricken
areas of the Great East Japan Earthquake
Promotion of team medical care
In order to improve the quality and efficiency of
medical care, the Health Policy Bureau is working to
disseminate the concept of “team medical care” in
which medical professionals such as doctors,
pharmacists, nurses, etc. increase their expertise and
provide medical care while dividing the work and
mutually cooperating/complementing each other. The
Bureau is also working to improve the work
environment at medical sites for supporting the
medical professionals who are at the front line of
medical care.
In addition, the Bureau is implementing a “clinical
training system” in which doctors are trained for two
years after receiving medical licenses to acquire basic
clinical skills over a wide range of areas.
In accordance with the “Act on Advancement of
Dental and Oral Health” that was approved in 2011,
the Bureau is working in the area of dental health
medical care by enhancing health checkups and
providing healthcare guidance through the “8020
campaign,” which aims at people retaining at least 20
teeth by the age 80, etc., and promoting in-home

dental based on care medical cooperation.
Promotion of team medical care based on
multi-occupational cooperation
Promotion of the pharmaceutical
industry and research and development
Pharmaceutical product and medical device
industries are expected to play a leading role in the
economic growth of Japan. In order to promote
“medical innovations” that lead to the creation of
innovative pharmaceutical products and medical
devices originating in Japan, the Health Policy Bureau
is working to promote research and development and
vitalize clinical trials through providing concentrated
funding for research expenses and the establishment
of hospitals as centers for clinical trials and research.
It also implements industrial policies in order to
increase market size with international appeal and
strengthen Japan’s international competitive power of
pharmaceutical product and medical device
industries. This is aimed at providing people with high
quality pharmaceutical products at reasonable prices.
Promotion of medical policies
National Centers for Advanced and Specialized
Medical Care are being established as core
institutions for developing and disseminating
advanced and pioneering medical care, clarifying
causes and symptoms, developing and researching
new diagnosis and treatment methods, training for
specialized medical professionals, and providing
information in a comprehensive and unified manner

on diseases for which finding cures has been a
national issue, including cancer, cerebral apoplexy,
and heart diseases.
The National Hospital Organization aims to provide
medical care, promote clinical studies, and provide
training to medical professionals, and has one of the
best hospital networks in Japan that consists of
approximately 60,000 beds and approximately 50,000
medical professionals.
Advanced and pioneering medical care has been
studied and provided at the national level in
cooperation with these institutions.
National Cancer Center
Over 60% of citizens wish to reach the end of their lives in their
own homes, but in actuality 80% die in hospitals. Promoting
in-home/long-term care has been an urgent issue in responding to the
wishes of the people and securing places for their recuperation and
when reaching the end of their lives.
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare designated fiscal 2012
as “In-Home/Long-Term Care 2012” and supports efforts made in
developing human resources that can provide high quality services,
establishes bases for cooperation between medical and long-term
care, and various studies, etc. which will enable people to receive the
necessary medical/long-term care services in the places they live.
In-Home/Long-Term Care 2012
Medical Professions
Division
Nursing Division
Research and
Development Division

Guidance of Medical
Service Division
Dental Health
Division
Economic Affairs
Division
National Hospital
Division
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
13 14
介
紹
局
部
老 健 局
Key Word
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Health Service Bureau
For healthy and hygienic daily life
In addition to taking care of one’s own health the
development of social environments where people can live
healthy lives is also important. The Health Service Bureau is
working to ensure public health by making our lives more
healthy and hygienic through health promotion, prevention
and treatment of various diseases, improvement of
environmental health, and the provision of safe water
supply systems, etc.
General Affairs
Division

Response to the Great East Japan
Earthquake
The occurrence of the Great East Japan
Earthquake negatively affected the health of the
disaster victims who were forced to live at evacuation
shelters and due to a lack of nutrition and exercise
and change in their living environments. This led to a
concern over their reduced health levels. There was
also the concern of the occurrence of infectious
diseases. The water supply was cut off to
approximately 2.3 million households. The
burial/cremation of the remains of the many victims
was also a major issue.
The Health Service Bureau has been working to
secure the health of the disaster victims and solve
public health issues in the disaster-stricken areas
while also supporting the reconstruction of the
disaster-stricken areas immediately after the
occurrence of the earthquake disaster up to the
present time in cooperation with local governments
and the relevant organizations nationwide, including
securing the health of disaster victims via public
health nurses and registered dietitians and supporting
the restart of laundry businesses, etc.
Efforts toward health promotion, measures
against cancer/lifestyle-related diseases
Approximately 60% of deaths in Japan are caused
by lifestyle-related diseases including cancer, heart
diseases, stroke, and diabetes, and it is extremely
important to prevent these lifestyle-related diseases.

The Health Service Bureau has therefore been
promoting the “National Health Promotion Measures
for the 21st Century (Health Japan 21),” which has
had the set goal of improving people’s lifestyles, etc.
since fiscal 2000. The Bureau is also working to
prevent lifestyle-related diseases and improve
people’s health by launching the National Campaign
for Healthy Lifestyles, which focuses on “proper
exercise,” “appropriate dietary habits,” and “smoking
cessation,” in fiscal 2008, along with the “Smart Life
Project” in cooperation with companies and
organizations in fiscal 2011. “Health Japan 21” will
end in fiscal 2012, but a new National Health
Promotion Measures is scheduled to be commenced
in fiscal 2013. In recent years the effort to not only
change the behavior of individuals but also to change
society into an environment that is suitable for health
promotion is considered important. The new National
Health Promotion Measures will respond to issues
from this point of view. In addition, recent surveys
have revealed that members of low income
households tend to skip breakfast, have the habit of
doing no exercise, and habitually smoke. The new
campaign is also expected to respond to these
issues.
Cancer is a disease that half of the population
suffers from during their lifetime and of which 30% of
them die. The Health Service Bureau is working to
improve cancer medical care such as radiotherapy
and chemotherapy, disseminate palliative care,

promote a cancer registry, and raise the percentage of
people having cancer screening, etc., being based on
the “Basic Plan to Promote Cancer Control Programs”
that was formulated in 2007. The next plan following
the “Basic Plan to Promote Cancer Control Programs”
is also scheduled to be decided by the Cabinet in the
first half of 2012 which will prioritize cancer measures
for the working generation and children.
Measures against infectious diseases
Infectious diseases significantly vary in their
infectivity, route of infection, incubation period,
symptoms, and the domestic and overseas situation
with their spread. Certain cancers, such as cervical
cancer, have been identified to be caused by viral
infections. Based on the latest scientific knowledge,
the Health Service Bureau is taking measures against
these various infectious diseases, including
monitoring the situation with infections, quarantine
inspections, dissemination and education on
preventative methods, vaccinations and health
checkups, and the development of the appropriate
medical system.
The Bureau is taking measures against the spread
of influenza every winter. It is also working on crisis
management, including formulation of the national
action plan, the stockpiling of antivirals, and the
development of vaccine production system in
anticipation of the occurrence of highly pathogenic
pandemic influenza due to virus mutations.
With regard to hepatitis, one of the major infectious

diseases in Japan, the Bureau is promoting measures
that include researching treatment methods,
establishing an examination system, and subsidies for
medical costs. It is also taking additional measures
against various other infectious diseases, including
tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, measles, and human T-cell
leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1).
In addition to periodic polio and Japanese
encephalitis, etc. inoculations implemented in
accordance with the law the Bureau has established a
project to promote three vaccinations for cervical
cancer, Hemophilus influenza type b (Hib) and
pneumococcus in fiscal 2010 while also reviewing the
overall national vaccination system.
Intractable disease measures, organ
transplantation, and relief for atomic
bomb survivors, etc.
The Bureau is promoting comprehensive measures,
including researching treatment methods, subsidies
for medical costs, the establishment of a consultation
system, and support for in-home care, etc. for
diseases of uncertain causes (intractable diseases)
and for which effective treatments have yet to have
been established. From July 2010 a person’s organs
can be provided to other patients once they have
been diagnosed brain dead and even if a patient’s
willingness to donate organs is uncertain provided a
letter of approval is obtained from their family
members. The number of organ transplantations has
been increasing but the Bureau has been making the

effort in its dissemination/education and appropriate
implementation. It is also working to secure donors for
Bone Marrow and Umbilical Cord Blood
transplantations that can be effectively used to treat
leukemia, etc.
Special attention is being paid to the victims of the
atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki and who are thus victims of the health
hazard posed by radioactivity and hence are being
provided with medical care benefits.
Environmental health, water supply
systems
The Bureau is working to promote the operation
and improve the hygiene of environmental
health-related businesses that support the hygiene of
people such as barbers, beauty salons, laundry
shops, public bath houses, hotels, and inns. In the
water supply system area, it is promoting the
development of more earthquake-resistant and
secure water supply systems nationwide, which is
based on the lessons learned from the Great East
Japan Earthquake.
According to the “National Health and Nutrition Survey” conducted in
November 2010, the percentage of habitual smokers was 19.5% (32.3% of males
and 8.4% of females). It has steadily decreased from 27.7% (46.8% of males and
11.3% of females) in 2003 and has now fallen below 20% for the first time. In
addition to the progress made in raising awareness of the negative health effects
of smoking and prohibiting smoking in public facilities the increased tax on
cigarettes, which the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare requested, which
commenced in October 2010, is considered to have had an effect.

According to the aforementioned survey of November 2010, the percentage of
habitual smokers who wish to quit smoking was 37.6%. Assuming that all of them
were to quit smoking the smoking rate would then decrease from approximately
19.5% to 12%. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is taking anti-tobacco
measures such as smoking cessation so that those who want to quit smoking can
do so.
Smoking rate
Specific Disease
Control Division
Environmental Health
Division
Cancer Measures and
Health Promotion Division
Tuberculosis and Infectious
Diseases Control Division
Water Supply Division
LifeInfants
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
15 16
介
紹
局
部
老 健 局
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Pharmaceutical and Food Safety Bureau
The Pharmaceutical and Food Safety Bureau sets
consistent regulations from production to sales and post-
marketing safety measures based on the “Pharmaceutical

Affairs Act,” in order to ensure the efficacy and safety of
drugs, medical devices, etc.
The Bureau is also working on various issues that are
directly linked to people’s lives and health, including blood
projects such as blood donation, and measures against
drug abuse.
General Affairs
Division
Life
Ensuring the efficacy and safety of
drugs and medical devices
Companies that manufacture/market drugs
and medical devices are required to ensure the
quality, efficacy, and safety of the products and
obtain approval of the Minister of Health, Labour
and Welfare. After products are released in the
market, manufacturers and medical institutions
are obliged to report adverse reactions to the
government. There is a relief system for those
who developed an adverse drug reaction.
Pharmacies and drug stores need to acquire a
license from a prefectural governor in order to
sell drugs. From June 2009, a system started in
which drugs are categorized according to the
level of the risk, and products with a high risk
are sold by pharmacists or registered
salespersons who can provide proper
information.
At the same time, it is important to establish a
system to deliver effective and safe drugs and

medical devices to clinical settings in a timely
manner. The Bureau is working to speed up
application reviews in order to eliminate “drug
lag” and “device lag,” which means it takes
longer until products are approved in Japan
compared to the United States and European
countries.
In these ways, it is necessary to set
regulations that respond to changes in social
and economic situations, international trends,
and advancements in science and technology.
The way medical administration should be is
being questioned in order to prevent the
reoccurrence of accidents such as drug-induced
hepatitis.
Protecting people’s lives and health through ensuring the efficacy and safety
of drugs and medical devices
Promotion of blood donation
Blood products, produced from donated blood,
are essential for medical treatment. Blood
donation from people is crucial to secure the
stable supply of these products to hospitals and
medical facilities. In recent years, the Bureau
has been actively promoting further support for
blood donation especially from young people
whose donations is declining.
Measures against drug abuse
Illicit drugs, such as narcotics, stimulants, and
cannabis, have been abused in a high level in
Japan. In response to this situation, the Bureau

has taken several measures, including
top-to-bottom investigation, promoting advocacy,
in order to prevent drug abuse.
Safety Division
Blood and Blood
Products Division
Evaluation and
Licensing Division
Compliance and
Narcotics Division
Department of Food Safety
Ensuring the safety of food that the people eat in their daily lives for protecting their health
Food is an essential part of everyone’s daily life. The Department of Food
Safety has thus been taking various measures to ensure food safety in order
to protect people’s health. People’s interest in food makes it important that
food safety measures are based on the latest scientific knowledge and that
information is shared between the relevant parties, including consumers,
manufacturers, and food-related business operators.
Responses to radioactive materials in food
After the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power
Plant accident the Department of Food Safety
promptly established provisional safety limits as
an emergency measure and has since been
conducting monitoring inspections and imposing
shipment restrictions in order to ensure no food
that exceeds the safety limits gets distributed.
The new standard values that were enforced in
April 2012, which replaced the provisional safety
limits, are set to be stricter than the provisional
safety limits to ensure greater safety and security

and with children also taken into consideration.
The Department will continue to take all possible
measures to eliminate people’s worries, including
the prompt disclosure of inspection results, etc.
Ensuring the safety of imported food
Japan depends on approximately 60% of its
food supply on imports. In consideration of the
globalization of food distribution the Department
aims to improve the monitoring system of
imported food quarantine stations to ensure the
safety of imported food. It is also working to
improve the hygiene measures of exporters by
requesting the pertinent countries to follow
Japan’s hygiene regulations through bilateral
talks and implementing on-site investigations
when needed. In particular, the “Japan-China
Food Safety Promotion Initiative” was formulated
in 2010, thereby strengthening the partnership
with China.
Testing (sampling) at a quarantine station
Responses to food poisoning
In recent years, there has been growing
concern that food poisoning damage could
spread over wider areas due to the development
of distribution systems, etc. In April 2011, five
persons died as a result of an outbreak of food
poisoning due to enterohemorrhagic Escherichia
coli over wide areas at rotisseries in Toyama
prefecture, etc. In order to respond to larger
scale/wider area food poisoning, the Ministry of

Health, Labour and Welfare is therefore
cooperating with local governments with respect
to the dissemination/education of the prevention,
early detection, and prevention of damage from it
spreading.
Establishment of food and additive standards
Food and additives that do not meet the
standards for ingredients and production
methods, etc. that are based on the Food
Sanitation Act cannot be imported, produced, or
sold. Limits on the amount of chemical and
pollutant content (including that of pesticides) that
are retained in food are also set as ingredient
standards. These standards were established by
the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare after
taking into account health effect assessments
concerning food conducted by the Food Safety
Commission.
Risk communication
In promoting food safety measures such as
responses to radioactive materials, imported food
safety measures, and BSE measures it is
important to gain the understanding of both
consumers and businesses in that these policies
should be based on scientific knowledge and with
a wide range of opinions taken into consideration.
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is
therefore promoting risk communication
(interactive opinion exchanges and active
information provision).

Policy Planning and
Communication Division
Inspection and Safety
Division
Standards and
Evaluation Division
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
17 18
老 健 局
Key Word
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Labour Standards Bureau (Industrial Safety and Health Department, Worker’s Compensation Department)
Adults
For the protection of workers’ livelihoods, safety, and health
The mission of the Labour Standards
Bureau is to protect workers’
livelihoods, safety, and health as well as
to ensure appropriate working
conditions in which workers are able to
work both securely and in comfort.The
Department is also working to secure
the safety and manage the health of
workers engaging in the restoration/
reconstruction process after the Great
East Japan Earthquake and the on-site
decontamination and other work in
dealing with the Fukushima Daiichi
Nuclear Power Plant accident.
Securing of minimum standards for

labour conditions by labour standard
inspectors
The Labour Standard Inspection Offices across
the nation receive many consultation requests
about overworking, unpaid wages and dismissal
from a number of workers and their family
members.
In Japan, minimum standards concerning
working hours, wages, and industrial safety and
health are set based on the Labour Standards Act,
the Industrial Safety and Health Act, the Minimum
Wages Act, etc. “Labour standards inspectors” are
in charge of encouraging companies to follow
these acts.
They were assigned at the 325 Labour Standard
Inspection Offices across Japan and provide
inspection and guidance for businesses. If any
violation is found, they request business owners to
improve promptly. In case of a serious/vicious
violation case, the inspectors conduct
investigations and impose severe punishment
“Dora Kohboku”
Story by Junpei Orodani,
Illustration by Saburo Ishikawa
Appearing serially in the Big Comic
published by Shogakukan
such as sending the
case to the Public
Prosecutor’s Office.
In order to realize

working styles with a
good work-life balance,
the Department
supports and promotes
individual cooperative
efforts of employers and
employees for the
reduction of working
long hours and the
encouragement of the
use of annual paid
leave.
Dissemination and education of labour
contracts, and reviewing the rules of
fixed-term labour contracts
Dismissals and worsening of labour conditions
have a critical impact on workers’ lives. The
Labour Contract Act was established with the
aim of setting basic rules concerning labour
contracts and preventing troubles between
employees and employers. The Bureau is
working to disseminate and educate these rules.
Many non-regular workers (who account for
one-third of all workers) are employed under
fixed-term labour contracts. In actuality,
however, the repeated renewal of their contracts
has become ordinary practice. Issues do exist
when they are compared to regular workers that
include [1] unstable employment, [2] existence
of disparities in terms of treatment, etc., and [3]

insufficient vocational ability development.
In order to respond to these issues and
eliminate the worries of fixed-term contract
workers so that they can continue to work both
securely and in comfort, a bill to revise the
Labour Contract Act was submitted to the Diet in
March 2012 (as of April 2012).
 Fixed-term labour contracts have been a common
characteristic of the majority of non-regular workers
Employers excluding officers (all companies): 51.11 million
Regular workers: 33.55 million
Non-regular
workers
(17.56 million)
Contract/entrusted
employees
(3.30 million)
Part-time
workers
(11.92 million)
Dispatched
workers
(0.96 million)
Others
(1.37 million)
Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications,
“Labour Force Survey (Detailed Tabulation) (annual average)” (2010)
* The number of fixed-term contract workers was estimated based on a “Labour Force
Survey (Detailed Tabulation) (annual average)” of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and
Communications and “2011 Survey of Fixed-Term Labour Contracts (Establishment

Survey)” of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
* Fixed-term contract workers
(12.00 million)
General Affairs
Division
Inspection Division
Working Conditions
Policy Division
Workers’ Life
Division
Policy Planning
Division
Industrial Health
Division
Safety Division
Chemical Hazards
Control Division
Workers' Compensation
Administration Division
Compensation
Division
Labour Insurance
Contribution Levy Division
Compensation
Operation Division
Industrial Safety and
Health Department
Workers’ Compensation
Department
Promotion of measures to prevent

industrial accidents and efforts made in
restoration/reconstruction after the
earthquake disaster
Although the number of industrial accidents has
been decreasing in the long term, over 100,000
workers per year still suffer either an injury or
illness that causes them to take four or more days
off work, and over 1,000 people per year die.
Aiming at creating a society with no industrial
accidents, the Labour Standard Inspection Offices
supervise companies for abatement of the violation,
and encourage them to voluntarily implement Risk
Assessment (investigation of exposure to hazard
and reduction of risk).
The Great East Japan Earthquake, subsequent
tsunami, and the nuclear power plant accident
resulted in an unprecedented amount of
human/physical damage. Ensuring the safety and
health of the workers that are still engaged in
restoration/reconstruction work after the Great East
Japan Earthquake, dealing with the Fukushima
Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident on-site, and
decontaminating the radioactive materials released
from the nuclear power plant remain extremely
important issues. The Labour Standards Bureau is
putting in the utmost effort to ensure their complete
safety and managing their health while reviewing
the safety and health standards in thereby adapting
to the ever-changing issues.
Revision of the Industrial Safety and

Health Act
In recent years, the number of applications for
workers’ accident compensation insurance has
been increasing for mental disorders such as
depression that are reportedly caused by stress
at work, and thus measures concerning mental
health in the workplace are becoming an
important issue. A bill to revise the Industrial
Safety and Health Act was therefore submitted
to the Diet in December 2011 to respond to this
issue and promote measures that will secure
workers’ health (as of April 2012).
Prompt and appropriate implementation
of worker’s compensation
The Worker’s Compensation Department
provides benefits of Workers’ Accident
Compensation Insurance to those who have had
industrial accidents and their surviving family
members (in case of deaths).
In principle, workers’ accident compensation
insurance mandatorily applies to all businesses
that employ a worker or workers. Insurance
benefits apply to all workers regardless of
employment status. Insurance benefits are paid
for injuries and illnesses caused due to work,
with or without the company’s responsibility.
There are increasing numbers of industrial
accident (occupational disease) cases including
mental disorders, which are difficult to judge
whether the injury/illness was caused during

work. The Bureau is making efforts to promptly
respond to workers who have had industrial
accidents by reviewing standards for approval
based on experts’ knowledge, etc.
The number of administrative consultations regarding
bullying/harassment in the workplace, or so-called “power
harassment,” has been increasing. “Power harassment” is said
to result in various losses to a company, including lowering the
workers’ motivation to work and negatively affecting the morale
of people around and the workplace atmosphere itself.
Power harassment typically involves those of higher status
than their subordinates but sometimes also between individual
workers. It also involves the rather difficult issues of how far a
company should intervene in their relationships and what acts
actually constitute “power harassment” in the first place. The
ideal ways of dealing with these issues were therefore
compiled into recommendations at a “round table conference,”
whose members included employees, employers, and experts,
and dissemination/education activities aimed at companies
and labour unions then commenced.
Surveys on the efforts of individual companies and further
discussions will also take place in the future.
Responses to “power harassment” (the issues of bullying/harassment in workplaces)
 Within the number of consultations concerning civil,
individual labour-related disputes, the percentage involving
bullying/harassment has been increasing
Number of consultations concerning civil, individual labour-related disputes [A] (left axis)
Percentage of “bullying/harassment” to the number of consultations concerning civil, individual
labour-related disputes [A] (right axis)
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

2007 2008 2009 2010
Fiscal
Number of consultations concerning
civil, individual labour-related disputes [A]
Percentage of “bullying/harassment” to
the number of consultations concerning
civil, individual labour-related disputes [A]
* Based on the “Enforcement status of individual labour dispute resolution
system in fiscal 2010” (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, May 2011)
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
19 20
老 健 局
Key Word
労働市場センター業務室
企 画 課
派遣・有期労働対策 部
障 害 者 雇 用 対 策 課
外 国 人 雇 用 対 策 課
General Affairs
Division
Employment Policy
Division
Employment
Development Division
Employment
Insurance Division
Policy Planning
Division
Demand and Supply
Adjustment Division

Employment
Measures for the
Elderly Division
Employment Measures
for the Persons with
Disabilities Division
Labour Market Center
Operation Office
Foreign Workers’
Affairs Division
Employment Measures for
the Elderly and Persons with
Disabilities Department
Employment Security Bureau
(Employment Measures for the Dispatched and Fixed-term Workers Department,
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Retirement
Toward stable employment
Issues concerning employment
AdultsStudents
“Work” is the basis of people’s lives.
The Employment Security Bureau
provides people with assistance needed
for them to be able to work with their
utmost effort so that people can live
comfortable lives through “work.”
12,000 Hello Work personnel
nationwide engage in their work with
the “Hello Work Service Charter” in

mind. The key words of the Charter are
“kind, fair, and prompt.” They retain
these three words in their minds while
they perform their duties every day in
thereby helping people to achieve the
right to work that is provided by the
Constitution of Japan.
The employment situation has been
improving, with the unemployment rate
moderately declining after having reached a
record high level of 5.5% in the summer of 2009.
However, the situation remains severe; the
unemployment rate was 4.5% and the number of
unemployed people was 2.84 million in 2011.
The Great East Japan Earthquake that took
place in March 11, 2011, in particular, had a
devastating impact on industries and
employment in the coastal areas of the Tohoku
region.
On the other hand, in order to maintain the
national vitality of Japan where population is
declining, it is necessary to moderate the
declining of labour force population and create a
society in which anyone who wishes to work is
able to work with vigor. In addition, due to the
changing economic environment including
globalization, the percentage of non-regular
workers exceeded 1/3. The balance of working
conditions between regular and non-regular
workers has become an issue.

Hello-Work-based employment measures
There are approximately 500 Hello Work offices
(public employment security offices) nationwide as
bases to resolve above-mentioned issues and
provide a safety net for employment.
Hello Work provides job seekers with job
placement services including in-depth consultation
and counseling.
Hello Work also provides special services
according to the situation of job seekers. For
example, the “Hello Work to Support New
Graduates” for supporting employment of
university students, and the “Mother’s Hello Work”
to provide child-raising job seekers with job
information and job placement services as well as
day care and information on childcare at one
place.
Hello Work also provides livelihood support for
unemployed people providing employment
insurance benefits so that they can concentrate on
job hunting.
On the other hand, Hello Work helps employers
to offer jobs and find employees who meet their
needs. It provides subsidies to employers who
make efforts for employment maintenance and to
those who employ people with difficulty finding
work (e.g. elderly people, persons with
disabilities, single mothers, etc.).
Hello Work also provides comprehensive
consultation services for those who lost their

residence or living fund due to the unemployment
in cooperation with municipalities that provide
welfare services including public assistance.
Hello Work undertakes an important role in
employment and livelihood support.
The effort put in has helped approximately 2.16
million people per year find a job through Hello
Work. 0.16 million university students, etc. found
a job in fiscal 2011 through job supporters’
support provided by the Hello Work to Support
New Graduates, etc. The rate of job offers to
graduating university students, etc. also improved
from the record low of the previous year.
A mother receiving employment
counseling with her daughter at Mother’s
Hello Work
Efforts made in restoration/reconstruction
after the earthquake disaster
Employment creation is essential in the
restoration/reconstruction after the Great East
Japan Earthquake. After the earthquake disaster a
“Conference on Promotion of Employment Support
and Job Creation for the Disaster Victims” was
established on March 28, 2011 with the aim of
formulating and strongly promoting comprehensive
measures across ministries and agencies that
could be used to support the employment of the
victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake and
thus create more employment, with the “'Japan as
One' Work Project” also having been commenced

on April 5, 2011.
Phase 1 through 3 of the said project have
already been formulated. “Phase 1” includes
exceptions to unemployment benefits and
employment adjustment subsidies being
implemented to support the work and thus the
livelihoods of the disaster victims. In addition, a
system was also established within “Phase 2,”
compiled on April 27, 2011, that subsidizes
businesses who provide places for employment,
including watching over elderly people and
children at evacuation shelters or temporary
housing and publicizing agricultural products and
tourist spots, etc., along with companies that
employ the disaster victims. “Phase 3,” compiled
on October 25, 2011, includes a system that
supports industrial reconstruction and employment
measures in a unified manner and was
established to further create more long-term stable
employment.
Through these efforts the Bureau has been
Establishment of the support system
for job seekers
When people lose their work, they are
financially supported mainly by the employment
insurance system. However, if those, who are not
covered by the insurance or who have completed
the qualification period for the benefits but have
not found a job, have difficulty making a living,
they cannot help relying on public assistance as

their last safety net.
For those kinds of people, the “support system
for job seekers,” which functions as a system
between unemployment benefits and public
assistance for those who are unable to receive
unemployment benefits, was commenced on
October 1. This system provides them with
opportunities to improve their skills while
supporting their livelihood, which would lead to
the stable employment.
Employment insurance payment counter
(Hello Work Fukushima)
working to fulfill
the disaster
victims’ desire
to obtain
opportunities
for stable
employment in
their hometown
as soon as
possible.
The “'Japan as One' Work Project” that was commenced on April 5,
2011, is a project which the entire government is involved in to support
the work and livelihoods of the victims of the Great East Japan
Earthquake via Japan attaining greater unity.
To date, Phase 1 of the restoration stage through to Phase 3 of the
reconstruction stage have been compiled. A symbol for the project was
also created and used as the background of the Minister’s press
conference room.

In order to achieve “employment reconstruction” in the disaster-stricken
areas as soon as possible the Bureau is promoting the project and
helping to ensure positive results by closely cooperating with the relevant
ministries and agencies.
'Japan as One' Work Project
Employment Measures for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities Department)
Employment Measures for
the Dispatched and Fixed-term
Workers Department
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
21 22
老 健 局
Key Word
Human Resources Development Bureau
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Adults
Supporting the development of occupational skills
The Human Resources Development Bureau develops
vocational training that can be used to the acquire skills
necessary in re-employment and vocational ability evaluation
standards which will enable all people to improve their
vocational abilities and thus obtain suitable employment,
implements measures in support of improving the skills of
workers such as promoting career consultation utilization,
and makes the effort to promote the skills and improve the
social status of skilled workers, etc.
General Affairs
Division
Human Resources

Development Division
Vocational Training
Promotion Division
Vocational Ability
Evaluation Division
Overseas
Cooperation Division
Significance of human resources
development administration
As economic globalization advance rapidly with
the growth of Asian countries, it has become
important to develop personnel who support areas
that are expected to grow in the future, in addition
to those in the manufacturing industry that has
been leading the economy. These areas include
long-term care and welfare, medical care, childcare,
information and telecommunications, tourism, and
the environment.
On the other hand, the percentage of people who
work in non-regular employment styles is increasing
in recent years. The number of young graduates
who are unable to find work is also increasing, and
the labour market has significantly changed,
reflecting the harsh economic situation. Providing
vocational training has become increasingly
important as a safety net for employment.
Moreover, Japan is facing issues including securing
future labour force with the rapid progress of the
declining birthrate and aging population. Under
these circumstances, in order for Japan to maintain

its power and continue to develop in the future, it is
necessary to improve the vocational abilities of
individuals and improve productivity.
Even if people develop their vocational abilities
through vocational training, it is difficult for them to
realizing employment, career change and
promotion within a company if they are not
evaluated appropriately. It is therefore important to
establish a system to evaluate vocational abilities in
an appropriate way.
Human resources development administration
supports workers by establishing a system in which
individual people can work according to their
vocational abilities through vocational training,
vocational ability evaluation, and career
consultation.
Public vocational training
 Both the national and local governments
provide vocational training, mainly for job seekers
receiving unemployment benefits or who require
special consideration, in the manufacturing,
long-term care, information and
telecommunications, and other areas that are
expected to grow by establishing human
resources development institutions or
commissioning private colleges or institutions to
do so. They also provide long-term vocational
training (one to two years) for new senior high
school graduates and vocational training for
workers that improves their skills.

Practical training within public vocational training
Support training for Job Seekers
The Support System for Job Seekers was
established in October, 2011, to provide job
seekers that are unable to receive
unemployment benefits, etc. with vocational
training and livelihood support during the
training period (refer to p.20). Under this system,
private education/training institutions provide
the vocational training (training for collectively
acquiring basic vocational abilities and practical
vocational abilities) accredited by the Minister of
Health, Labour and Welfare in thus supporting
the early employment of job seekers.
Vocational ability evaluations
In order to realize greater employment, career
changes, and promotion within a company, an
established evaluation system is needed as
criteria for use in appropriately evaluating the
acquired vocational abilities. The Bureau is
implementing National Trade Skill Test, which
are national examinations, mainly in the field of
the manufacturing industry, as well as
developing vocational ability evaluation
standards across a wide range from the
manufacturing through to the service industries.
National Skills Competition
Career consultation service
It is necessary to receive effective vocational
training and appropriate evaluation for

vocational abilities in order to improve individual
abilities. It is important to provide career
consultation at each juncture of a career
(employment, career change, retirement process,
etc.). Career consultation is a counseling support
given so that individuals can design their own
career according to their adequacy and work
experience, and based on these, choose their
occupation and receive vocational training in an
appropriate way. The Bureau is developing an
environment in which people can receive career
consultation services when necessary.
Conclusion
Although Japan has little energy resources, it
has resources of technology and skills that are
superior to those in other countries. In order to
continue developing in the future, it is necessary
to focus on the promotion of fostering personnel
who have acquired advanced skills and
knowledge as well as technological innovation. It
is ideal to build an ability-based society in which
all people can acquire skills needed for a desired
job that meet their skills, they are able to
upgrade their skills while working, the acquired
vocational abilities are appropriately evaluated
and people try to acquire more advanced
vocational abilities.
Human resources development administration
will continue to support the development of
vocational abilities using various ways.

Career consultation
The job card system was created in 2008 as a
system for use in promoting a transition to stable
employment and by fostering people’s occupational
aspirations and clarifying issues in career
developments through careful career consultations
using Job card, providing them with the opportunity
to receive practical vocational training in a
combination of on-the-job-training and classroom
lectures, and then compiling the results of
evaluations made by training institutions along with
job histories, etc. as Job card.
From fiscal 2011, the Bureau has been
promoting the general utilization of Job card among
job seekers, workers, and students, and with the
aim of gaining social adoption of Job card as a tool
that demonstrates their vocational abilities.
In addition, Job card for students were newly
developed in fiscal 2011. The Bureau is working to
actively promote their wide utilization as reference
material for companies to use in understanding
students during employment screening and as a
career development support tool for the students
themselves.
Job card system
 Outline of the job card system
■
Background
■Required measures
○ Non-regular workers such as young people who could not become regular workers during the

“job-finding ice age” and continue to be job-hopping part-timers (Freeters), females who have
gone through childcare, and single mothers that face difficulty gaining employment as regular
workers for the following reasons:
・ Not having been provided with the opportunity to develop their vocational abilities (= lack of
vocational abilities)
・ Not having had their performance or level of improvement of vocational abilities evaluated,
even if they had gained experience as a non-regular worker
○ The employment situation has remained severe, but promoting the transition of them and
other temporarily unemployed people into stable employment is considered necessary
It is necessary to provide them with career consultations and practical vocational training for
achieving stable employment, including regular employment, and employment support such as
vocational ability evaluations after training
Career consultations on the transition to stable employment through three
stage support using Job card
Career consultations Practical vocational
training
Vocational ability
evaluations after training
Clarifying employment goals/desires
by reflecting past work experience,
acquired qualifications, and own
strengths that will then attract
companies’ attention, etc.
Acquisition of the practical skills
that companies require through
vocational training combining OJT
and Off-JT, etc.
Understanding one’s own vocational
abilities through objective ability
evaluations by companies and

training institutions, and then utilizing
them to appeal to companies
Employment
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
23 24
老 健 局
            
Key Word
Equal Employment, Children and Families Bureau
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Marriage and childbirth
The Equal Employment, Children and Families Bureau
promotes equal opportunities between men and women and the
creation of employment environments that are capable of adapting
to diverse working styles and which thus suit people’s lifestyles
and ensure that everyone can fully display their abilities and work
with a good work-life balance. In order for the whole of society to
support the development of children who will be the next
generation leaders of society, the Bureau also promotes
development of environments in which the economic burden of
childcare can be reduced and people can raise their children with
a sense of security.
General Affairs
Division
Declining birthrate
The rapid progress of the declining birthrate has
necessitated that a labour force be secured and
society realized in which people’s desires regarding
marriage/childbirth/childcare can be satisfied.

With securing a labour force, eliminating the
M-shaped curve of the percentage of females in the
labour force, which indicates a decline with females in
the child-rearing generation, remains an issue. The
Bureau is therefore promoting the employment of
females through providing support that ensures a
good balance between work and childcare, and
including improving the childcare leave system and
day care services, etc. In addition, the Bureau aims to
eliminate any disparities in the promotion and wages,
etc. of men and women and ensure fair treatment that
is formulated according to achievement and
contribution of part-time workers whose working
styles vary. It is important to enable everyone to fully
display their abilities regardless of their gender or
working style.
It has been pointed out that the background to the
present decline in the birthrate includes concern
about the economic burden of childcare as
employment is becoming increasingly unstable,
worries about balancing work and childcare, as
represented by the issue of “wait-listed children” at
day care centers, and worries about childcare
because of community ties growing weaker and the
growing orientation toward nuclear families.
Comprehensive support for children and childcare
needs to be improved in thereby helping to solve
these issues.
Adults
ChildrenInfants

Realizing a society full of children's smiling faces and in which people can
display their abilities regardless of their gender or working style
Equal Employment
Policy Division
Work and Family
Harmonization Division
Part-time Work and
Home Work Division
Family's Welfare
Division
Child-rearing
Promotion Division
Day Care Division
Maternal and Child
Health Division
Equal employment measures
Equal employment involves the effort to eliminate
any unreasonable discriminatory treatment in various
aspects of employment such as appointments and
wages, and, for example, between men and women
and between full-time workers and part-time workers.
The Equal Employment, Children and Families
Bureau is working on measures that can be used to
ensure the Act on Securing, Etc. of Equal Opportunity
and Treatment between Men and Women in
Employment, which prohibits discrimination on the
basis of gender in the workplace, satisfied, along with
the fair treatment of part-time workers.
The Bureau is also working to improve the
environment in which child-rearing parents can work

in thereby realizing a better “work-life balance,”
including promotion of the childcare leave system,
granting certification (the “Kurumin” certification logo)
to companies that actively
promote childcare support,
and “Ikumen Project” that
supports men who enjoy
childcare and who can
develop themselves
through childcare, etc.
Ikumen Project
● Ikumen declaration
● Supporter declaration
● Ikumen stars
● Others
Ikumens nationwide register their dreams
and desires with regard to childcare.
Individuals and companies that support
Ikumens register messages for Ikumens.
Ikumens who contribute their childcare
experiences and prove worthy of
introduction to everyone are featured as
“stars.”
Useful information such as working styles
that enable fathers to balance both work
and their family is provided.
Ikumen
Search
Support for children and childcare
As for support for children and childcare, it is

necessary to take various measures in a
balanced way. From the viewpoint of supporting
the development of each child who will lead the
society in the next generation, the Bureau
provides child allowances to households with
children aged 15 years and younger.
Day care centers and after-school children’s
clubs provide essential services to support
parents who are both working while raising
children. However, some children in urban areas
are unable to enter day care centers due to the
capacity limit (wait-listed children), which is a
problem that needs to be addressed.
In order to respond to concerns and worries
about childcare, it is important to develop the
center for regional childcare support such as a
“space” where parents and children including
housewives can easily gather.
As for these various childcare support services,
in January 2010, the Bureau set numerical
targets of the service improvement for the next
five years as the “Vision for Children and
Childcare.” Based on this vision, the Bureau is
improving various childcare support services in a
systematic way.
Prevention of child abuse and
establishment of an environment in
which women can experience pregnancy
and childbirth with a sense of security
Child abuse has been a serious social problem

in Japan. The Bureau is therefore working on
prevention and the early detection of child abuse
by visiting all families with an
infant, etc. The Bureau also
aims to improve the foster
parent system and
orphanages to support
development of abused
children.
In order to raise people’s awareness on child
abuse, in cooperation with local governments and
private organizations, the Bureau is conducting a
campaign using the orange ribbon, which is the
symbol of prevention of child abuse.
It is also important to establish an environment
in which women can experience pregnancy and
childbirth with a sense of security. The Bureau is
working to promote health checkups for pregnant
women to protect the health of expectant mothers
and unborn babies and to disseminate the
Maternity Mark.
A new system for children and childcare in which a
good rearing environment for all children is secured
and children and child-rearing households supported
by the whole of society is being discussed.
The new system aims to provide high quality
school education/day care services during childhood
by unification of kindergartens and day care centers
and through creating institutions (integrated child
care centers) that will have the merits of both day

care centers and kindergartens. In addition,
measures for wait-listed children will be strongly
promoted quantitatively with day care services while
still maintaining the overall quality, mainly via child
care centers, and through enhancing various day
care services such as small-scale and family-type
day care services. Furthermore, regional childcare
support will be improved through increasing places
for consultations on childcare and for parents and
children to communicate, and places where children
can be temporarily taken care of.
New system for children and childcare
Prime Minister Noda with some children at the facilities
(from the Cabinet Secretariat website)
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
25 26
Social Welfare and War Victims’ Relief Bureau
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Life
General Affairs
Division
The Social Welfare and War Victims’ Relief Bureau carries
out the planning of fundamental social welfare systems. Such
systems include basic support of social welfare – to help those
who have trouble making a living or those who are isolated from
society, such as public assistance and measures for homeless
people; training and securing personnel (certified social
workers, certified care workers, etc.); and the promotion of
cooperative activities in a community.

The Bureau also conducts the consolation project for the
souls of the war dead including sending their remains back to
Japan, provides relief pension benefits to the victims’ bereaved
family, and provides livelihood support for the Japanese who
were left behind in China after returning to Japan.
To guarantee minimum standards of living, relieve war victims’ bereaved
family, etc.
Public Assistance
Division
Community Welfare
and Services Division
Welfare Promotion
Division
Planning Division of
War Victims' Relief
Relief Division
Record Division
Public assistance
Under the present harsh social and economic
situations, the number of welfare recipients
reached a record high and is still increasing. The
public assistance system is the last “safety net”
that guarantees minimum standards of wholesome
and cultured living to people. In addition to
financial support, it is important to manage the
system from the viewpoint of assisting the
independence of welfare recipients. The Bureau is
therefore focusing on the measures for the
independence and employment of welfare
recipients.

The second safety net measures
In order to help people who lost work to look for
a job comfortably without immediately receiving
public assistance, the Bureau implements the
second safety net measures including the
provision of housing allowances (that subsidizes
house rent) and the loan of general support fund.
Securing personnel who are engaged
in welfare and long-term care services
Securing personnel who are engaged in welfare
and long-term care services has been difficult in
some regions and businesses. Under the
circumstance, in order to stably
secure high quality personnel
who are engaged in welfare and
long-term care services, the
Bureau takes measures to
promote the new and continuous
employment of these personnel in
cooperation with the relevant
bureaus and departments.
Relief for war victims’ bereaved family, etc.
Based on the spirit of national compensation,
the Bureau provides the relief pension benefits to
the bereaved family of the dead from the World
Wars. Special benefits etc. are provided to the wife
and parents of the war dead as a compensation
for their mental sufferings. Livelihood support is
provided for the Japanese who were left behind in
China to secure a stable post-retirement life,

taking into account the exceptional circumstances
they are in.
Consolation of the souls of the war dead
As a responsibility of the national government,
the Bureau works to send the remains of the war
dead back to Japan. The government holds the
Memorial Ceremony for the War Dead annually on
August 15, which is attended by the Emperor and
Empress, to console the souls of the dead from
the World Wars.
Recovery of the remains of the war
dead on Iwo Jima
Memorial Ceremony for
the War Dead
Passing down the hardships during
and after the war
The National Showa Memorial Museum and the
Shokei-kan in Kudan, Tokyo, collect and preserve
historical materials and information as well as
hold exhibitions of materials and verbal testimony
in order to pass down the hardships during and
after the war to the next generation.
Department of Health and Welfare for Persons with Disabilities
Improving comprehensive measures for persons with disabilities to live a normal life and
with a sense of security within their community
The purpose of the health, labour, and welfare
administration is to create a society in which all people can
live with a sense of security. The Department of Health and
Welfare for Persons with Disabilities aims to realize that type
of society by supporting the lives of persons with disabilities.

Improving mental health and medical welfare is also an
important role of the Bureau, as promoting mental health has
become a familiar issue.
Policy Planning
Division
Welfare Division for
Persons with Disabilities
Mental Health and
Disability Health Division
Further improvement of welfare
services for persons with disabilities
Welfare services for persons with disabilities
have been improved to date through revision of
laws, including consolidation of institutions for
children with disabilities for easier use, and
improvement/enhancement of consultation support
systems.
The budget for welfare services for persons with
disabilities has steadily been increasing, with the
fiscal 2012 budget being approximately twice the
fiscal 2005 budget Revision of the cost of welfare
services for persons with disabilities took place in
April 2012 to improve the treatment of
welfare/long-term care personnel and the quality
of welfare services for persons with disabilities.
Toward the realization of the community
living of persons with mental disorders
At present there are at least three million
persons with mental disorders in Japan. That
number is more than the number of patients of the

so-called “four major diseases,” which include
cancer, etc. The Ministry of Health, Labour and
Welfare is pushing forward with discussions on
support for them leaving hospitals and the
necessary support for community living with a
sense of comfort.
Close relationships between persons with
disabilities and institution personnel
Mental health care
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is
working on improving treatment and early detection
as measures for use with depression, etc.
The Great East Japan Earthquake caused great
irreplaceable losses, and many of the disaster
victims are still unable to return to their daily lives.
The large scale disaster made measures to
prevent prolonged PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress
Disorder) and increased depression very important.
The Ministry is working on securing personnel who
can engage in mental health care and community
mental health and medical care, etc.
Promotion of sports for persons with
disabilities
Sports for persons with disabilities in Japan
commenced with the Tokyo Paralympics of 1964.
Persons with disabilities and medical/welfare
professionals in Japan were deeply impressed by
the foreign athletes involved in sport, and the
movement to popularize sports for persons with
disabilities then grew.

The London Olympics and Paralympics were
held in 2012. The level of competition is getting
quite high and more medals can be expected.
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
therefore continues to further promote sports for
persons with disabilities.
11th National Sports Festival for People with
Disabilities (Oidemase (welcome to) Yamaguchi)
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
27 28
老 健 局
Key Word




Health and Welfare Bureau for the Elderly
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Post-retirement
General Affairs
Division
The Health and Welfare Bureau for the Elderly promotes
long-term care/welfare policies for the elderly, including
long-term care insurance system, and to ensure that
elderly people can continue to live in the communities they
have lived in for such a long time while Japan is
experiencing an unprecedented aging society.
To maintain the highest life expectancy in the world
Long-term Care Insurance

Planning Division
Division of the Support
for the Elderly
Promotion Division
Division of the Health
for the Elderly
The current situation concerning
long-term care insurance
When people require care, they still wish to
maintain their dignity and independence: (1) living
in the community and the house where they have
lived for a long time, (2) choosing services, and (3)
making the most use of their own abilities. With the
aim of fulfilling such wishes of the elderly, the
long-term care insurance system was established
in 2000. The current total expenditures for
long-term care are approximately 8 trillion yen, and
the number of care service users is approximately
4.2 million.
According to the “people’s opinions concerning
the long-term care insurance system,” which was
collected by the Ministry of Health, Labour and
Welfare in 2010, more than 60% of people said
that they “value the long-term care insurance
system.” This means that the long-term care
insurance system is steadily functioning as the
core of the social security systems, which support
the lives of people in their senior years, and that
the system is vital to Japan’s aging society
combined with declining birthrate.

However, if the aging of the population
progresses and when the baby boomer generation
turns 75 years old or older in 2025, the long-term
care expenditures are expected to be
approximately 17 trillion to 21 trillion yen. It is
necessary to hold national debates on the balance
between benefits and burdens in order to stably
operate the long-term care insurance in the future.
 Changes in long-term care expenditure
Trillion yen
Fiscal
Establishment of an integrated
community care system
It has been pointed out that the community is not
providing sufficient support for risks in long-term
care. For example, elderly people who have high
medical needs or require high levels of long-term
care have difficulty living at home, and family
members who take care of the elderly bear a great
burden.
Approximately 70% of people wish to receive
long-term care at home when they require
long-term care. On the other hand, many people
are applying for admission to facilities.
In order to address this situation, it is necessary
to establish an integrated community care system
within people’s daily living areas, which provides
continuous, organic, and integrated services for
medical care, long-term care, preventive care,
housing, and livelihood support, through

comprehensive reform of social security and tax.
The Bureau improves home-based services
(home-visit services available 24 hours a day, 365
days a year) and develops Intensive Care Home
for the Elderly and services housing for the elderly
in cooperation with the Ministry of Land,
Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
Image of an integrated community care system in 2025
Medical
care
Long-term
care
Livelihood support/
long-term care prevention
In-home
care, etc.
Commuting
to hospitals
Commuting
to facilities
Home-visit
long-term/
nursing care
Residence
Own home/housing
with care services
for the elderly
In-home care, etc.
Home-visit nursing
care

Group homes
Small-scale
multi-functional small
group home
services, etc.
24 hour regular
visiting/on demand
response services
Community general center/
long-term care support specialist
Coordinate consultation
businesses and services
Elderly clubs, neighborhood self-governing bodies,
long-term prevention, livelihood support, etc.
* Integrated community care is assumed to be provided for the unit of junior high school
district of around 10,000 population
Securing personnel who are engaged
in long-term care services
As the demand for long-term care services
increases, it is necessary to focus on the
“supply” side of long-term care services – to
secure personnel who are engaged in long-term
care services.
It is considered that approximately 1 million
more workers engaged in long-term care
services will be necessary by 2025. However,
wages of long-term
care service workers
are lower than those in
other industries, and

the turnover rate is
high.
The Bureau takes
measures for the
improvement of wages
of long-term care
service workers and for
the improvement of the
working environment.
A test of decentralization
It is necessary for a community to establish a
system in which people can live in their home
town with a sense of security when they require
long-term care services. It is said that the
long-term care insurance system that started in
2000 is a test of decentralization. In this system,
municipalities collect the insurance premiums of
Primary Insured Persons as insurers, fully
respecting the opinions of local residents, and
provide services needed. It is a flexible system
that meets the needs of actual situation, which
introduces advanced efforts made in the field
and institutionalizes them.
Through the long-term care insurance system,
the Bureau is working to (1) increase the
number of healthy elderly people by
encouraging them to have a meaningful and
healthy life and (2) promote preventive long-term
care in order to minimize the use of long-term
care services.

In regional levels, efforts are made by local
residents as “dementia supporters” to support
elderly people with dementia and their family
members by developing mutual
help/coordination/cooperation and network.
The world’s most advanced
institutional design
Japanese average life expectancy is 83 years,
and the healthy life expectancy (a life span in
which one can live independently and does not
require long-term care) is 76 years, both of
which are the highest in the world. Japan’s best
health has also been accredited by the World
Health Organization (WHO).
However, in order to let all people realize this
situation, it is necessary to address various
problems that Japan will face in the future
(increase in social security expenses, insufficient
long-term care services in medical and welfare
fields, changes in family relationships, etc.).
The Bureau aims to lead the world in
establishing stable and sustainable systems that
support the longevity society, focusing on the
long-term care insurance system.
“Dementia supporters” are the
people who have the appropriate
knowledge and understanding of
dementia and thus can support
elderly people with dementia and
their family members in regions

and job categories. The “One
Million Dementia Supporters
Caravan” campaign that
commenced in fiscal 2005 has
been promoted with the aim of
training one million “dementia
supporters” nationwide. As of
December 31, 2011 the number
had exceeded three million.
Dementia supporters
 Implementation status of the
“One Million Dementia Supporters Caravan” campaign
<Training for Caravan Mate teachers>
<Dementia Supporter Training Program>
* Total number of Mate Supporters:
3,091,354 (As of December 31, 2011)
○ Operators: prefectures, municipalities, nationwide occupational groups, etc.
○ Purpose: to train “Caravan Mates” who will teach in the Dementia Supporter Training
Program in a region and a job category
○ Contents: learning in groups the basic knowledge on dementia, how to teach in the
supporter training program, method of planning by object, curriculum, etc.
○ Number of Mates:
69,924 (as of December 31, 2011)
○ Operators: prefectures, municipalities, occupational groups, etc.
○ Trainees: <Local residents> Neighborhood self-governing bodies, elderly clubs,
welfare volunteers, family groups, organizations for disaster/crime
prevention, etc.
<Occupational groups> Companies, financial institutions such as banks,
fire department, police, super markets, convenience stores,
delivery service operators, public transport institutions, etc.

<Schools> Elementary, junior high and senior high schools,
teachers and staff, PTA, etc.
○ Number of supporters:
3,021,430 (as of December 31, 2011)
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
29 30
老 健 局
Key Word
Health Insurance Bureau
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Life
General Affairs
Division
Japan adopts a universal health insurance system in which
everyone has public health insurance such as Employees’
Health Insurance or National Health Insurance and is thus able
to receive medical examinations and treatment via a single
insurance card.By realizing a society in which people can
equally receive the necessary medical care by paying a certain
amount of money, Japan has achieved the world’s highest
level of average life expectancy and health/medical standards.
Handing down the universal health insurance system to the next generation
Employees' Health
Insurance Division
National Health
Insurance Division
Division of the Health Services
System for the Elderly
Medical Economics

Division
Actuarial Research
Division
Strengthening and regionally widening the
financial basis of National Health Insurance
National Health Insurance is a health insurance
system that is operated by municipalities, etc. and
to which people who do not have Employees’
Health Insurance or other insurance plans
subscribe. Use of this system has realized a
“universal health insurance system” in which
everyone has public health insurance.
Approximately 50 years have passed since
National Health Insurance was first established.
The initial subscribers of the National Health
Insurance were mostly self-employed and those
involved in the agriculture, forestry and fisheries
industries. With aging and changes in the
employment structure, etc., however, it gradually
became an insurance system to which many
non-regular workers and elderly people with a high
need for medical care subscribe. In addition, there
are some National Health Insurance programs
with unstable financial management tendencies
due to their small number of subscribers.
The stable operation of National Health
Insurance, which is the basis of the universal
health insurance system, necessitates the
strengthening and regionally widening of the
financial basis of National Health Insurance. A bill

to revise the Act and promote this was approved at
a regular Diet session in 2012.
 Changes in the percentage distribution of households
by occupation of householder
•
Self-employed
or engaged in
agriculture,
forestry and
fisheries
industries
• Employee
• Unemployed,
others
1965 1985
2005 2008 2009
(Source) Health Insurance Bureau, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare “Survey on the Insured of
National Health Insurance”
(Note 1) The figures include households whose householder is not a subscriber of National Health
Insurance.
(Note 2) Attention should be paid to the fact that the proportion of households of unemployed declined
with the establishment of the late-stage medical care system for the elderly in fiscal 2008.
 Percentage distribution by scale of insurers
10,000 or more
subscribers
Less than 10,000
subscribers
Revision of reimbursement of medical fees
of 2012
Reimbursement of medical fees is the payment

paid to medical institutions by medical insurers
when a patient receives treatment in a medical
institution. Reimbursement of medical fees is
revised every two years, which largely affects the
way medical care should be.
The revision of the medical fee reimbursements
of 2012 took place simultaneously with a revision of
long-term care fees within the long-term care
insurance system. When we look ahead into the
future aging society, it is important to establish a
system in which elderly people are able to receive
medical and care services according to their
requests in their home town. The Ministry of Health,
Labour and Welfare aims to revise the
medical/long-term care fees to achieve that aim.
Current medical fee revisions aimed to reduce
the burden on and improve the treatment of medical
professionals working at hospitals providing acute
medical care such as emergency medical services,
and obstetrics and pediatrics who have been
significantly burdened. The revision took place
simultaneously with the long-term care fee revision,
and hence it also dealt with stronger cooperation
between medical and long-term care services and
improved in-home medical care.
Furthermore, efforts have also been put into
introducing insurance for new medical technologies
to ensure that people can benefit from rapid
advances in medical technologies.
High-cost medical care expenses

The co-payment that patients pay when they
receive medical services at medical institutions is
10% to 30% of the overall medical expenses
depending on their age. There is a system where
the co-payment is limited according to the age and
income (maximum co-payment) of the patient so
that the fixed-rate payment does not significantly
burden the household budget when high-cost
medical expenses are imposed. This is referred to
as the high-cost medical care treatment system
and has a very important role. However, the
amount of the payment has doubled over the last
10 years due to advances in medical services,
etc., thus making how to make the system
sustainable an issue.
However, with the existing high-cost medical
care treatment system, a patient that receives
high-costing out-patient medical services is
required to temporarily pay the amount of
co-payment, even when the monthly co-payment
exceeds the maximum co-payment. The system
was therefore revised and from April 1, 2012,
those that have followed certain procedures no
longer have to pay the amount which exceeds the
maximum co-payment.
Concrete example of new medical
technologies
Technology:
Image-based hepatectomy navigation system
Outline:

In the case of liver or intrahepatic bile duct
cancer, a 3-dimensional image and volume
measurements are conducted using CT image
data before the operation for enabling the
operating technique to be planned and the liver
sufficiently functional.
During the operation the hepatectomy takes
place within the appropriate excision range via
use of a 3-dimensional image.
Liver cancer (yellow)
and portal vein
branches of the liver
cancer area (purple)
Predicted image of
liver cancer portal vein
area (orange)
Predicted image after
excision of liver cancer
 Amount of high-cost medical care expenses
○ The amount of high-cost medical care benefits has doubled in
10 years (Actual amount in fiscal 2009: 1.8 trillion yen)
(100 million
yen)
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
(Note 1) The significant increase of fiscal 2003 was due to the introduction of a 10%
co-payment within the health services system for elderly that took place in October
2002 and the rate of co-payments for insured persons with health insurance being
raised from 20% to 30% in April 2003, etc.
Fiscal
Generic drugs are low-price drugs that can be manufactured and sold at the same level of quality as

conventionally used drugs (brand-name drugs) after their patents have expired. Generic drugs get approved
for manufacture and sale at the same efficacy as brand-name drugs. The development cost of the drugs is
generally low, and hence they are priced lower than brand-name drugs.
Increased use of generic drugs can therefore be considered to contribute to reducing the burden on patients
and improving health insurance finances. However, the quantitative share of generic drugs in Japan was
22.8% as of September 2011, thus indicating the level of generic drug dissemination in Japan to be low when
compared to the United States and European countries.
The medical fee revision of 2012 aimed to promote the use of generic drugs through providing information
on prices of generic drugs to patients at pharmacies and promoting a method of listing generic names that are
common to both brand-name drugs and generic drugs (generic prescriptions) rather than listing individual
product names when doctors prescribe drugs.
Promotion of generic drug usage
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
31 32
介
紹
局
部
老 健 局
Key Word
Pension Bureau
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Life
General Affairs
Division
The Pension Bureau is working to ensure the pension system
truly trusted by people who have a sense of security about the
future by planning for a public pension system that supports the
post-retirement lives of the people and in anticipation of the

rapid progress of a declining birthrate and aging population. The
Bureau also manages public pension-related services as part of
its role to contribute to the stability of people’s lives by securing
the people’s trust in the pension system
Ensuring a sense of security that supports “an era of 80-year life span”
Post-retirement
Pension Division
International Pension
Division
Corporate Pension and National
Pension Fund Division
Actuarial Affairs
Division
Pension Service
Planning Division
Pension Service
Management Division
Roles of the pension system
The average life expectancy of the Japanese
male is 79.64 years, and that of the female is
86.39 years, which shows that Japan has the
world’s highest longevity rate. The public
pension system financially supports people’s
post-retirement life through the intergenerational
support system.
At present, approximately 50 trillion yen of
pension benefits are paid annually to 38 million
people and the pension benefits cover 70
percent of the income of elderly households, so
the public pension system is essential for

people’s lives.
The pension system has accumulated
approximately 120 trillion yen of reserves in
order to reduce the insurance premium burden
of future generations. These funds are managed
as bonds and stocks, which play a large part in
Japan’s finance and economy.
The mission of the Pension Bureau is to
formulate plans for the system and management
to stabilize the pension system over the long
term that supports people’s peace of mind.
 Financial flow of the entire public pension system
Citizens
Insurance premiums
Pension system
Pension benefits
32.2 trillion yen
(Approx. 9% of total national income)
51.9 trillion yen
(Public pension benefit payment)
National Pension
Employees’ Pension
Mutual Aid Association
Pension
(Fiscal 2011)
(Fiscal 2011)
National Pension Insurance premium:
15,020 yen (from Apr. 2011)
<Final amount> 16,900 yen
(from April 2017, value in fiscal 2004)

Employee’s Pension Insurance premium rate
:
16.412% (from Sep. 2011)
<Finale rate> 18.3% (from Sep. 2017)
Amount of pension reserve
funds for Employee’s Pension
and National Pension
(as of the end of fiscal 2010)
121.9 trillion yen
(on a market value basis)
cf. National general
expenditures
(initial budget of fiscal 2011)
54.1 trillion yen
Contributions of the government
to the pension system
(Fiscal 2011)
11.5 trillion yen
National
government,
etc.
Current pension system
The pension system in Japan has been
practicing the universal pension insurance system
in which all citizens have pension insurance since
the establishment of the national pension system
in 1961. The Bureau is maintaining the long-term
sustainability of the system with a certain level of
pension standards through the examination of
pension finances and the revision of the system

conducted every five year.
However, various difficult problems have arisen
from the significant changes that have taken place
in the social and economic situation when
compared to the years of rapid economic growth,
which include the progress of the declining
birthrate and aging population and low economic
growth. More concretely, concern exists over an
increase in the number of people who will have no
or quite low pension benefits due to the problem of
an increasing number of people not paying their
pension insurance premiums or not subscribing to
it because of [1] an increase in the number of
non-regular workers subscribing to the National
Pension system has resulted in a lack of security
with future pensions for unstable employees and
[2] the burden of the insurance premiums has
been growing heavier for subscribers to the
National Pension, etc.
Responding to these problems makes reforming
the system using the following three directions
necessary: [1] a unified system that does not
negatively affect working styles or life course
selections and in place of a pension system which
can be an obstruction to challenging new jobs or
employing females, [2] a system with a minimum
safeguard function and improved poverty
prevention/relief functions for elderly people in
thereby coping with an increase in the number of
single elderly, low-income people, and

non-subscribers, and [3] a system that is both
trusted by the people and financially stable.
General policies on comprehensive social
security and tax reforms were decided by the
Cabinet on February 17, 2012, in thereby
substantiating reform of the system. The general
policies include raising the tax burden rate of the
basic pension costs covered by insurance
premiums and tax to 50%, adding to the amount of
pension benefits for people with low incomes, etc.,
and reducing the length of period for which people
are required to pay insurance premiums in order to
receive pension benefits from 25 years to 10
years. It will be important to complete a final draft
in the near future through a national debate.
Expansion of pension administration
In addition to the public pension system, the
Pension Bureau formulates plans for corporate
pension that secure more income in combination
with the public pension in the latter stage of life.
The Bureau is also promoting the conclusion of
social security agreements with other countries. A
social security agreement enables, for example,
totalization of the periods of coverage in Japan
and those in other countries. As of March 2012,
Japan has fourteen such agreements in effect.
Appropriate management of
pension-related services
The series of public pension-related services
has been managed by a non-government public

corporation, the Japan Pension Service, but under
the supervision of the Minister of Health, Labour
and Welfare with the national government
(Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare) being
responsible for the financial/management of the
system. The organization aims to provide the
services from the customers’ perspective.
The current pension-related services include the
promotion of subscription to the National Pension
or Employees’ Pension, taking measures for the
collection of premiums, the provision of benefits,
pension consultation, etc. For example, in order to
address the problem concerning the rate of
National Pension premium payment, the Bureau
aims to raise people’s awareness about the
system and increase their understanding and
confidence in the national pension system by
establishing an environment in which people can
pay the national pension premiums without
worries. The Bureau believes that this will lead to
the recovery of the rate of premium payment.
The pension problem found during the
management of former Social Insurance Agency
revealed a number of cases in which pension
records were not correctly managed, and this has
seriously damaged the people’s trust in the
system. Toward the resolution of this problem, the
Bureau is making utmost efforts to recover
accurate pension records in close cooperation with
the Japan Pension Service.

The Pension Bureau continues to strive for the
establishment and development of a pension
system that is truly trusted by the people through
various measures concerning the system and
management.
Pension consultation
When consumer prices have fallen in
prices in the past the amount of pension
payments remained unchanged because of
the Special Measures Act. That fall in prices
continued and therefore at present the
amount of pension payments is 2.5%,
which is higher than the normal level. This
has resulted in over paying approximately
one trillion yen annually. In order to
achieve stable pension finances and
intergenerational fairness, a bill to eliminate
this exceptional level of pension payments
over the three years of fiscal 2012 through
to fiscal 2014 was submitted to the Diet.
Elimination of exceptional levels within pension payments
Exceptional
level
<Conceptual diagram> (case of no increase/decrease in prices/wages over 3 years)
Normal
level
2011
2012 (from Oct.)
2013 2014
* In April 2012, a revision (indexing to prices) of -0.3% will take place in accordance to the

fall in prices in 2011.
* The amount of reduction will be reduced in case of an increase in prices/wages.
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
33 34
介
紹
局
部
老 健 局
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
Director-General for Policy Planning and Evaluation
(social security section)
Bureaus and Departments
Bureaus and Departments
Counsellor’s Office for
Social Security
The Director-General for Policy Planning and Evaluation (social security section)
formulates plans and adjusts the cross-sectional/comprehensive social security
systems, and coordinates the overall picture and promotes dissemination/publicity of
comprehensive social security and tax reform. The Director-General also promotes the
development of bases for use in implementing the social security/tax number systems.
In addition, the Director-General is in charge of coordinating policies for use in the
areas of social security, including responding to taxation, regulation/system reform,
and regional autonomy reform, and evaluation and analysis of policies, etc.
Aiming to provide reliable and vibrant social security
Director-General for Policy Planning and Evaluation
(labour section)
The Director-General for Policy Planning and Evaluation (labour section)
develops labour policies and conducts general coordination toward the revival of
a large middle class population. The Director-General also conducts studies and

analysis concerning short-term labour economy trends and various issues from
the medium- to long-term viewpoint. In addition, the Director-General is also
working on the formulation of policies of the Labour Policy Council that is
comprised of representatives from the public, employees, and employers who
have full knowledge of work sites and on the resolution of labour disputes by
Labour Relations Commissions.
The revival of a large middle class population
Counsellor's Office for
Labour Policy
Counsellor’s Office for
Policy Evaluation
Counsellor’s Office for
Information Policies
Counsellor's Office for
Labour Administration
Counsellor's Office for
Labour Relations
Changes in the social and economic situation
surrounding social security systems
Following the establishment of the framework of the
social security systems in the 1960s and ’70s, the social
and economic situation changed significantly, including a
declining birthrate and aging population, changes in
family structures and local communities, changes in the
employment environment such as an increase in
non-regular workers, and stagnant economic growth.
In particular, the population structure in 1990 was of the
“tossing into the air type” in which each elderly person
aged 65 or older was supported by approximately five of
the working generation aged 20-64. At present, however,

society is of the “mock cavalry battle type” in which each
elderly is supported by approximately three people, but it
will have been transformed into the “piggy back type” by
2050 in which each elderly person will be supported by
approximately 1.2 people.
Expenses of and contributions to the social
security systems
The amount of social security benefit payments,
including pensions, medical care, long-term care, welfare,
and public assistance, was approximately 47 trillion yen in
fiscal 1990, but had then more than doubled to 108 trillion
yen by fiscal 2011. Approximately 60% of those expenses
were covered by insurance premiums and approximately
40% by public funding.
However, the tax revenue of 60 trillion yen in fiscal
1990 had decreased to 42 trillion yen by the fiscal 2012
budget, with the sources of public funding for the present
social security being mostly composed of debt for future
generations.
It has thus become an urgent issue for the future of
Japan to ensure that the social security systems are
improved and made more stable to cope with these
changes in the situation and at the same time achieving a
sounder financial situation, with rapid implementation of
the “comprehensive social security and tax reformations”
being therefore necessary.
Efforts put into social security reform
The combination of efforts to improve and stabilize social
security through securing consumption tax revenue along
with the efforts to review the social security systems is

therefore important, and instead of the assumption that
benefits are mainly for the elderly generations with the
burden being mainly borne by the working generations
reconstructed as social security systems “which benefit all
generations” in which all people including the working
generations can actually sense the “benefit” of social
security.
In order to achieve this, efforts will have to be made to
improve the services in kind in particular, including
elimination of wait-listed children and enhancement of
regional childcare support through creation of a new system
for children and childcare and improvement of in-home
medical/long-term care, etc. In addition, the social security
systems will need to be reviewed with the aim of securing
the sustainability of pensions and expanding the application
of social insurance to part-time workers, etc.
Poverty/disparity measures will also be
enhanced/strengthened in cooperation between welfare and
employment so that all people can live independent lives.
The Director-General for Policy Planning and Evaluation
(social security section) is working to formulate an overall
picture of the abovementioned social security reform, make
comprehensive adjustments with the respective bureaus and
departments, and cooperate/coordinate with the relevant
ministries and agencies.
The Director-General also provides dissemination,
publicity and education of social security and the formulation
and publication of Annual Health, Labour and Welfare
Reports, etc.
 Image of Lifecycle Benefits and Burden

Benefits
Annual amount (10 thousand yen)
Burden
Lump-sum birth allowance, etc.
Day care centers/
kindergartens
Education related
Benefits in cash for children
Childbirth expenses, etc.
Employment insurance
Insurance premiums
Taxes
Pensions
Long-term care
Medical care
Co-payments
Age 0
Age 5
Age 10
Age 15
Age 20
Age 25
Age 30
Age 35
Age 40
Age 45
Age 50
Age 55
Age 60
Age 65

Age 70
Age 75
Age 80
Revival of a large middle class population
The number of workers is expected to decrease in
the future due to the declining birthrate and aging
population, thus making it necessary that a society
(society with participation of all people) is realized in
which all people can realize their motivation to work,
including young people, elderly, and women who are
willing to work. In addition, the number of so-called
non-regular workers, including fixed-term contract
workers, part-time workers, and dispatch workers,
etc., being quite significant makes the realization of
“decent work (human work with job satisfaction)”
important so that people are treated fairly regardless
of their employment style, can have continuous
career development, and are able to work in a
healthy and safe manner. Furthermore, it will also be
necessary to develop a multi-layered safety net so
that people can engage in job seeking activities
without overly worrying if they lose their job.
Reviving a “large middle class population” who
can work to support their own lives through these
measures will enable the Japanese economy and
social security systems to be sustained.
In addition to responses to these medium- to
long-term issues, it is also necessary to immediately
take emergency employment measures according to
drastic changes in the economy and society. In

recent years, emergency employment measures
have been taken, which include support for
employers maintaining employment, employment
creation, and vocational training, to respond to the
severe economic situation after the so-called
Lehman Shock and the recent steep appreciation of
the yen.
The difficult issues involved such as the revival of
a large middle class population and emergency
employment measures need to be dealt with in
cooperation across multiple sections within the
Ministry and the relevant ministries and agencies.
The Director-General for Policy Planning and
Evaluation (labour section) is a section that conducts
general coordination within the Ministry and
cooperates with the relevant ministries and
agencies.
The think tank of labour economy analysis
It is important to conduct a broad range of studies
and analyses concerning short-term labour economy
trends and various issues from a medium- to
long-term viewpoint. As a culmination of these
studies and analyses, “White Paper on the Labour
Economy” is published every year. The 2011 edition
of the White Paper analyzed “Trends in Generational
Working Styles and Employment Management.”
Labour policies are then planned based on the
results of the above studies and analysis.
Formulation of policies by the public,
employees, and employers

In order to smoothly implement labour policies, it is
important that both employees and employers, who
are the parties involved in labour issues, participate
in planning and implementation of these policies.
ILO conventions stipulate that labour policies should
be decided through a council comprised of the same
number of employees and employers, and hence the
tripartite principle is the basis used in labour areas.
The Labour Policy Council was therefore
established, which comprises representatives from
three parties (the public, employees and employers)
and in which important labour policies are
deliberated.
To resolve various labour-related disputes
between employees and employers, the government
set up a prefectural Labour Relations Commission in
each prefecture and the Central Labour Relations
Commission as an extra agency of the Ministry of
Health, Labour and Welfare.
Hearing at the Labour Relations Commission
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
35
36
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
35
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
Health, Labour and Welfare
Administration
Review of Fiscal 2011
Comprehensive

social security
and tax reform
related matters
Great East Japan
Earthquake
related matters
Other measures
Approved bills
June 30, 2011
The “Definite Plan for the
Comprehensive Reform of
Social Security and Tax” was
decided by the Headquarters
of the Government and
Ruling Parties for Social
Security Reform, which
includes basic policies for
overall social security reform
and fundamental tax system
reform, including
consumption tax
December 24, 2011
The “Basic Strategy
for Rebirth of Japan”
was decided by the
Cabinet, which includes
the steady realization of
comprehensive social
security and tax reform
and the revival of a

large middle class
population
February 17, 2012
The “Outline of
Comprehensive Social
Security and Tax Reform”
was decided by the Cabinet,
which substantiates the
Definite Plan for the
Comprehensive Reform of
Social Security and Tax and
provides concrete directions
and procedures for the
overall social security reform
and fundamental tax system
reform, etc.
March 5, 2012
A revision of reimbursement of
medical fees in 2012 was announced
with reinforcement/division and
cooperation of hospital and hospital bed
functions (focused investment in
medical resources for acute medical
care, etc.) and enhancement and more
focused/efficient provision of in-home
medical care, etc. being identified as
priority issues in accordance with the
Outline of Comprehensive Social
Security and Tax Reform
March 13, 2012

A revision of reimbursement of long-term
care fees in 2012 was announced, which
aims to enhance in-home services, provide
facility services in a focused manner,
secure long-term care personnel, and
improve service quality, etc.
March 27, 2012
The “Vision of Desirable Working Styles”
was formulated to address non-regular
employment issues in a cross-sectional
manner
April 27, 2011
Phase 2 of the “'Japan as One' Work
Project” was compiled, which includes
establishment of a system to subsidize
businesses that provide places for
employment, including watching over
elderly people and children at
evacuation shelters or temporary
housing, etc. and companies that
employ disaster victims
October 7, 2011
“Support Center for Securing Medical
Professionals in Soso Region” (present
“Reconstruction Support Centers for
Medical Care/Welfare in Soso Region,
etc.”) was established at the Soso
Public Health and Welfare Office in
Fukushima Prefecture to support the
securing of medical professionals for

the Soso region in Fukushima
prefecture
October 25, 2011
Phase 3 of the “'Japan as One' Work
Project” was compiled, which includes
mechanisms for supporting industrial
reconstruction and employment
measures in a unified manner and to
further create long-term stable
employment
March 15, 2012
New standard values for radioactive
materials in food to replace the
provisional safety limits* were announced
(April 1, 2012)
* After the nuclear power plant accident,
provisional safety limits for radioactive materials
in food were immediately established on March
17, 2011, and monitoring inspections
continuously conducted by the respective local
governments, etc. in order to avoid distributing
any food that exceeds the safety limits
April 5, 2011
Phase 1 of the “'Japan as
One' Work Project” was
compiled, which includes
measures for supporting
immediate work and
livelihoods of the disaster
victims

Review of Fiscal 2011
October 1, 2011
The “support system for job
seekers” was commenced to
provide people who are
unable to receive
unemployment benefits with
the opportunity to improve
their skills while supporting
their livelihoods, which could
then lead to more stable
employment
October 1, 2011
“Escort support" (services
to support transportation, etc.
of persons with severe visual
disabilities when they go out),
which was positioned as a
welfare service for persons
with disabilities by the Act on
Partial Revision of the
Services and Supports for
Persons with Disabilities Act,
etc. approved in December
2010, was commenced
October 1, 2011
A new standard for meat consumed raw (beef)
was enforced in response to food poisoning cases
due to enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli in
Toyama prefecture, etc.

October 21, 2011
“Comprehensive Measures against Yen
Appreciation” were decided by the Cabinet, which
include measures to create/sustain employment
as a comprehensive response to the steep
appreciation of the yen
December 4-7, 2011
ILO Asia and the Pacific Regional Meeting was
held in Japan (Kyoto)
March 13, 2012
The “General Support for Persons with
Disabilities Act” was decided by the Cabinet,
which includes provisions to apply welfare
services to persons with intractable
diseases, etc., expand the subjects of
visiting care for persons with severe
disabilities to persons with mental
retardation/mental disorders, and
consolidate care homes and group homes,
etc.
March 14, 2012
A revision of reimbursement of
welfare service fees for persons with
disabilities in 2012 was announced,
which aims to secure improved
treatment of welfare/long-term care
personnel and support community
life/transfer of persons/children with
disabilities, etc.
2011: Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Feb. Mar.2012: Jan.

April 22, 2011
The “Act on Repeal of the Act on the
Employment and Human Resources
Development Organization of Japan,
Independent Administrative Agency”
was passed/approved, which includes
provisions to abolish the Employment
and Human Resources Development
Organization of Japan and transfer its
vocational ability development
businesses to the Japan Organization
for Employment of the Elderly, Persons
with Disabilities and Job Seekers
June 17, 2011
The “Act on Partial Revision of the
Act on the Readjustment of Facilities for
Insured Persons and Beneficiaries
Organization, Independent
Administrative Agency” was
passed/approved, which reorganized
the Readjustment of Facilities for
Insured Persons and Beneficiaries
Organization from the organization for
consolidating/rationalizing
pension-funded welfare facilities to the
organization for operating hospitals, etc.
July 15, 2011
The “Act on Partial Revision of
the Immunization Law and the Act
on Special Measures concerning

Relief of the Health Hazard Induced
by Novel Influenza Vaccination” was
passed/approved to allow all the
possible measures of preventive
vaccinations in the case of the
emergence of novel influenza
June 15, 2011
The “Act on Partial Revision of
the Long-Term Care Insurance Act
for Strengthening Long-Term Care
Service Infrastructures” was
passed/approved, which includes
provisions on creating regular home
visit/as-needed services, etc. to
enable elderly people to live
independent daily lives in
communities
June 17, 2011
The “Act on Prevention of Abuse
of Persons with Disabilities and
Support for Attendants of Persons
with Disabilities” was introduced by
the Diet members and approved,
which includes provisions to
obligate people who discover any
abuse to report them for the
prevention and early detection of
abuse of persons with disabilities
August 5, 2011
The “Act on Partial Revision of

the National Pension Act, etc. to
Support Securing Income by
National Pension and Corporate
Pension, etc.” was
passed/approved, which includes
provisions to extend the payment
period of National Pension
insurance premiums in order to
prevent occurrence of no or low
pension benefits in the future and
further support for securing people’s
incomes in their senior years
August 26, 2011
The “Act on Special Measures
concerning Payment of Child Allowance
for Fiscal 2012” was passed/approved,
which includes provisions for the payment
of child allowances from October 2011 to
March 2012
December 9, 2011
The “Act on Special Measures
concerning Payment of Benefit for Carriers
of Certain Hepatitis B Virus” was
passed/approved, which aims for overall
resolution of the incident of hepatitis B
virus infection caused by reuse of syringes
and needles during mass vaccinations,
etc.
March 28, 2012
The “Act on Partial Revision of the Act for

Securing the Proper Operation of Worker
Dispatching Undertakings and Improved
Working Conditions for Dispatched
Workers” was passed/approved, which
includes provisions to prohibit day worker
dispatches in principle to protect dispatched
workers and stabilize employment
December 7, 2011
The “Act on Partial Revision of the Act
on Partial Revision of the National
Pension Act, etc.” was passed/approved,
which includes provisions on raising the
percentage of the national subsidy for the
basic pension in fiscal 2011 to 1/2 in
order to make pension finances more
sustainable in the future
March 28, 2012
The “Act on Partial Revision of the
Employment Insurance Act and the Act on
Special Accounts for Stabilizing the Lives
and Employment of Workers in Response
to the Present Severe Employment
Situation” was passed/approved, which
includes provisions on extending the
temporary measures of increasing the
frequency of payments, etc. that were
taken after the Lehman Shock
March 30, 2012
The “Act on Partial Revision of the Child
Allowance Act” was passed/approved,

which includes provisions to commence the
payment of child allowances in fiscal 2012
For people, for life,
for the future
◉
◉
❷
◉ 、
◉
❸
 
◉
 
▶
❶
Toward realization of a safe society in which people can have hope and pride
Basic ideas of comprehensive social security and tax reform
The social and economic situation of Japan have significantly changed in recent years.
This reform aims to reform social security and tax systems in a unified manner and with
consideration given to these changes in the situation.
Aging population;
Decreased working
generations
Changes in
employment bases
such as increased
non-regular
employment
Changes in the
family styles and local

social infrastructure
Stagnant economic
growth
Realizing social security systems “that benefit all generations”
Aiming to reduce “shifting the cost of social security to the future
generations” and establish more stable social security systems
“Fundamental tax system reform,” including consumption
tax, will be implemented for simultaneous achievement of
improvement/stability of social security and sound finances
The current social security systems, which assume benefits are mainly for the elderly
generations and the burden is mainly borne by the working generations, will be
reviewed to achieve greater fairness between generations and within generations in
terms of both the benefit and burden and reconstructed into social security systems
“that benefit all generations” in which working generations can also sense the benefit.
Use of consumption tax* will be expanded to include the four areas of “pension/medical care/
long-term care/childcare.” * National government portion
Aiming to establish stable social security systems by securing stable financial resources
that will cover the expense of social security which is increasing every year due to aging
Shifting of the necessary expense of social security to future generations will be
reduced by securing the financial resources required by increasing the national
government’s burden regarding the pension to 50%
Fundamental tax system reform, although mainly through increased consumption tax,
will be implemented from the point of view of securing stable financial resources for
social security without unfairly imposing the burden on certain generations
A new overall tax system concept that is appropriate to Japan will be realized through
implementing overall tax system reform to respond to changes in the social and
economic situation, etc.
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
37
介

紹
局
部
38
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
37
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare





Organization Chart
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
Minister’s Secretariat
Statistics and Information Department
Personnel Division, General Coordination Division, Finance Division, Regional Bureau Administration
Division, International Affairs Division, Health Sciences Division
Policy Planning Division, Vital, Health and Social Statistics Division, Employment, Wage and Labour
Welfare Statistics Division, Information System Division
Health Policy Bureau
General Affairs Division, Guidance of Medical Service Division, Medical Professions Division, Dental Health Division,
Nursing Division, Economic Affairs Division, Research and Development Division, National Hospital Division
Health Service Bureau
General Affairs Division, Cancer Measures and Health Promotion Division, Specific Disease Control Division,
Tuberculosis and Infectious Diseases Control Division, Environmental Health Division, Water Supply Division
Pharmaceutical and Food Safety Bureau
General Affairs Division, Evaluation and Licensing Division, Safety Division, Compliance and
Narcotics Division, Blood and Blood Products Division
Department of Food Safety

Policy Planning and Communication Division, Standards and Evaluation Division, Inspection and
Safety Division
Labour Standards Bureau
General Affairs Division, Working Conditions Policy Division, Inspection Division, Workers’ Life
Division
Industrial Safety and Health Department
Policy Planning Division, Safety Division, Industrial Health Division, Chemical Hazards Control
Division
Workers’ Compensation Department
Workers' Compensation Administration Division, Labour Insurance Contribution Levy Division,
Compensation Division, Compensation Operation Division
Employment Security Bureau
General Affairs Division, Employment Policy Division, Employment Development Division,
Employment Insurance Division, Labour Market Center Operation Office
Employment Measures for the Dispatched
and Fixed-term Workers Department
Policy Planning Division, Demand and Supply Adjustment Division, Foreign Workers’ Affairs Division
Employment Measures for the Elderly and
Persons with Disabilities Department
Employment Measures for the Elderly Division, Employment Measures for the Persons with
Disabilities Division
Human Resources Development Bureau
General Affairs Division, Human Resources Development Division, Vocational Training Promotion
Division, Vocational Ability Evaluation Division, Overseas Cooperation Division
Equal Employment, Children and
Families Bureau
General Affairs Division, Equal Employment Policy Division, Work and Family Harmonization Division, Part-time Work and Home
Work Division, Family's Welfare Division, Child-rearing Promotion Division, Day Care Division, Maternal and Child Health Division
Social Welfare and War Victims’
Relief Bureau

General Affairs Division, Public Assistance Division, Community Welfare and Services Division,
Welfare Promotion Division, Planning Division of War Victims' Relief, Relief Division, Record Division
Department of Health and Welfare
for Persons with Disabilities
Policy Planning Division, Welfare Division for Persons with Disabilities, Mental Health and Disability
Health Division
Health and Welfare Bureau for the
Elderly
General Affairs Division, Long-term Care Insurance Planning Division, Division of the Support for the
Elderly, Promotion Division, Division of the Health for the Elderly
Health Insurance Bureau
General Affairs Division, Employees' Health Insurance Division, National Health Insurance Division, Division
of the Health Services System for the Elderly, Medical Economics Division, Actuarial Research Division
Pension Bureau
General Affairs Division, Pension Division, International Pension Division, Corporate Pension and National Pension
Fund Division, Actuarial Affairs Division, Pension Service Planning Division, Pension Service Management Division
Director-General for Policy
Planning and Evaluation
Counsellor, Counsellor for Policy Evaluation
Affiliated Institutions
Councils, etc.
Regional Bureaus
External Bureaus
■ Quarantine Stations (13)
■ National Hansen’s Disease Sanatoriums (13)
■ Research Institutions (4) National Institute of Health Sciences,
National Institute of Public Health,
National Institute of Population and Social Security Research,
National Institute of Infectious Diseases
■ Social Welfare Facilities (3) National Homes for Juvenile Training and Education (2),

National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities
■ Social Security Council ■ Health Sciences Council ■ Labour Policy Council ■ Medical
Ethics Council ■ Pharmaceutical Affairs and Food Sanitation Council ■ Evaluation
Committee for Incorporated Administrative Agencies ■ Cancer Control Council ■ The
Council for Promotion of Measures against Hepatitis ■ Central Minimum Wages Council
■ Labour Insurance Appeal Committee ■ Central Social Insurance Medical Council
■ Examination Committee of Social Insurance ■ Examination Committee for Certification
of Sickness and Disability ■ Examination Committee for Relief Assistances
Regional Bureaus of
Health and Welfare (8)
Regional Labour Bureaus (47)
Labour Standard Inspection Offices (325)
Public Employment Security Offices (437)
Central Labour Relations
Commission
Executive
Office
General Affairs Division, Examination
Division, First Adjustment Division,
Second Adjustment Division, Third
Adjustment Division, General Examiner
As of April 1, 2012
Affiliated institutions and Regional Bureaus of MHLW
Quarantine stations
Quarantine Stations are located in international
seaports and airports and provide inspections
concerning the immunity of infectious diseases
in humans and the safety of imported food.
National Institute of Health Sciences
(Setagaya Ward, Tokyo)

This facility conducts investigation and
research to evaluate the safety and quality of
chemicals that are familiar to us including
pharmaceutical products and food.
National Institute of Public Health
(Wako City, Saitama)
This facility provides training for municipal
staffs in charge of health and social welfare
services and conducts various surveys on
these matters.
National Institute of Population and
Social Security Research
(Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo)
This institution develops and publishes
materials concerning relationship between
benefits and burdens of the social security
systems, projection of social security benefit
payment, estimation of future population, the
National Fertility Survey, etc.
National Institute of Infectious Diseases
(Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo)
This organization conducts research on the
prevention, examination, and treatment of
infectious diseases including AIDS, and
implements national examinations to guarantee
the safety and efficacy of vaccinations, etc.
National Homes for Juvenile Training and
Education
This is a special facility for the independence
and rehabilitation of children who need

protection.
National Rehabilitation Center for
Persons with Disabilities
This is an advanced special facility that
provides medical care and training, and
conducts research and on-the-job training for
persons with disabilities in an integrated
manner.
Regional Bureaus of Health and Welfare
Regional Bureaus of Health and Welfare were
established by integrating the previous
Regional Medical Affairs Offices and regional
narcotic control offices in conjunction with the
establishment of the Ministry of Health, Labour
and Welfare. The Bureaus provide supervision
and guidance concerning welfare and medical
care, supervision of health insurance societies
and employees’ pension fund, and conducts
anti-drug investigations.
Labour Standard Inspection Offices
The Labour Standard Inspection Offices
provide supervision so that working conditions
prescribed in the Labour Standards Act are
ensured. They are also in charge of the
improvement of the wage system, reducing
working hours, preventive measures for
industrial accidents and payment of labour
insurance.
Public Employment Security Offices
(Hello Works)

Public Employment Security Offices provide
consultation and job placement services to job
seekers and employers in order to adjust the
supply and demand of work force. They are
also in charge of paperwork for the application
and payment of employment insurance and the
provision of subsidies, etc. for the promotion of
employment.
Affiliated Institutions Regional Bureaus
For people, for life,
for the future
Kasumigaseki Station (Marunouchi Line)
Kasumigaseki Station (Chiyoda Line)
Kasumigaseki Station (Hibiya Line)
Sakurada Street
Iwaida Street
Tokyo Metropolitan
Police Department
Ministry of Land,
Infrastructure,
Transport and
Tourism
Ministry of
Internal Affairs
and
Communications
Ministry of
Foreign Affairs
Ministry of
Finance Japan

Ministry
of Justice
Public
Prosecutors
Office
Joint Court
Building
Bar Associations
Building
Ministry of
Agriculture,
Forestry and
Fisheries
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
(Central Government Building No.5)
East
Entrance
Ministry of
Economy, Trade
and Industry
Japan Post
Holdings Building
Small and
Medium
Enterprise
Agency
Hibiya Park
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan
Service Guide
Chuo Godo Chosha 5 go-kan, 1-2-2 Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8916

Tel: 03-5253-1111 (Main switchboard) Website: />