Disability Japan Welfare

Japan’s Disability Pension Review Questioned; Staff Say “No One Will Tell the Truth in Internal Probe’”

A controversy has emerged over Japan’s disability pension system after reports that staff at the Japan Pension Service had, in some cases, secretly discarded doctors’ assessment results and asked other doctors to re-evaluate applications. An internal document acknowledged the risk that reviews could be repeated until staff were satisfied, suggesting potential arbitrariness, but the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare concluded it could not confirm such behavior and attributed most cases to errors or scheduling constraints under a strict three-month processing deadline. However, some staff remain skeptical of the ministry’s findings, arguing that internal investigations cannot uncover the truth and that reassessments were sometimes influenced by expectations about how particular doctors would rule, raising concerns about transparency and fairness in the system

Unknown's avatar
by Michael Gillan Peckitt
Comments 0

Extract from Kyodo via News.jp

May 26 2026

TOKYO – Late last year, the following issue came to light regarding the government’s disability pension, which is paid to people with disabilities:

“At the Japan Pension Service, which handles practical operations, staff had for years secretly discarded some doctors’ assessment results and had other doctors re-evaluate the cases.”

This was revealed through reporting by Kyodo News based on staff testimony. In response, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, which oversees the Pension Service, conducted hearings and other investigations. During the process, the existence of an internal document was uncovered stating that “there is a risk that assessments may be redone until staff are satisfied.” This suggested the possibility that staff may have arbitrarily discarded decisions.

However, the ministry later announced that it “could not confirm that staff were making arbitrary judgments.”

Meanwhile, one staff member disclosed:

“In an internal investigation, no one will tell the truth.”

0 comments on “Japan’s Disability Pension Review Questioned; Staff Say “No One Will Tell the Truth in Internal Probe’””

Leave a comment