The number of influenza patients reported at designated medical institutions across Japan at the end of the year hit the highest level since comparable data became available in 1999, the Japanese government said Friday. It marked the 10th consecutive week of increase and a 1.51-fold rise from the week prior, and there were shortages of some of the medications used to treat influenza.
On January 7th, it was announced on the official website that NHK Educational TV’s barrier-free variety show “Baribara” (broadcast on Thursdays 8pm) will end in March.
The production team of the show announced, “Baribara, which has been broadcast with the aim of eliminating ‘barriers’ for ‘all minorities who have difficulty living’, will end in March this year.”
A 43-year-old man arrested over the stabbing of a boy at a McDonald’s restaurant in southwestern Japan last month was newly charged on Thursday 9th January with the murder of a 15-year-old girl who was also a victim of the attack, police said. The arrested man told the police he targeted the pair for a specific reason, and the attacks were not random, adding that the victims are “not at fault.”
Japan’s Children and Families Agency has compiled draft guidelines for municipalities on operating shelters for young people who run away from home due to abuse or family issues, clarifying that those aged below 18 can use such shelters without parental consent.
Concerns have been raised about the deaths of elderly people who died of “indirect causes” after they were evacuated, dying at care facilities. Jiji Press reported that as of Wednesday 25th December 2024 that “22 of 176 elderly evacuees from Ishikawa had died at elderly care facilities or elsewhere in Toyama, according to the Toyama Prefectural Government. In Aichi, 16 of 68 such evacuees died at care facilities or hospitals.
On January 7th, it was announced on the official website that NHK Educational TV’s barrier-free variety show “Baribara” (broadcast Thursdays 8pm) will end in March.
Among the children and students attending public elementary and junior high schools in Nagano prefecture, there are over 10,700 children with developmental disabilities, the highest number since statistics began being collected in 2003. The Prefectural Board of Education intends to improve support to meet the needs of each individual. In September of last year, the Prefectural Board of Education conducted a survey of public elementary and junior high schools regarding children and students with developmental disabilities. According to the survey, the total number of children with developmental disabilities was 10,786, including 6,789 elementary school students and 3,997 junior high school students, the highest number since statistics began being collected in 2003.
Gambling addiction through online casinos is becoming a serious problem in Japan, particularly after the COVID-19 crisis began in 2020. The number of requests for related consultations received by the Society Concerned about the Gambling Addiction, a public interest incorporated association in Tokyo, has increased 11-fold in five years.
Concerns have been raised about the deaths of elderly people who died of “indirect causes” after they were evacuated, dying at care facilities. Jiji Press reported that as of Wednesday 25th December 2024 that “22 of 176 elderly evacuees from Ishikawa had died at elderly care facilities or elsewhere in Toyama, according to the Toyama Prefectural Government. In Aichi, 16 of 68 such evacuees died at care facilities or hospitals.”
Tomiko Itooka, recognized by Britain’s Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest person in September last year, has died in western Japan, health ministry and other officials said Saturday 4th January. She was 116. Itooka died at 9:03PM of old age on Dec. 29 at a care home for the elderly in Ashiya, Hyogo Prefecture.
Barrier Free Japan