Category: Japan

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 20, 2026 Number of comments0
Disability Japan Welfare

As costs double over 10 years, Japan’s Ministry of Finance calls for spending curbs on welfare services for disabled

At the Fiscal System Subcommittee of the Fiscal System Council held on April 28, discussions were also held on the field of disability welfare. The Ministry of Finance stated that the total cost of disability welfare services, combining public expenditures and user co-payments, had reached 4.2 trillion yen as of fiscal year 2024, roughly doubling over the past decade, and expressed the view that it is necessary to curb further cost increases.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 20, 2026 Number of comments0
Disability Employment Japan Podcast Welfare

Ibaraki Prefecture Announces Revocation of Welfare Facility’s License Over 7 Million Yen Fraudulent Benefit Claims [Podcast Episode]

The fraudulent claims amounted to approximately 7 million yen in total, disbursed across 17 municipalities in four prefectures: Ibaraki, Chiba, Saitama, and Tokyo. The respective local governments will demand the return of approximately 9.8 million yen, which includes surcharge penalties. This marks the fifth time since July 2025 that Ibaraki prefecture has revoked a facility’s designation due to fraudulent benefit claims and document forgery.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 18, 2026 1
Disability Employment Japan Welfare

Ibaraki Prefecture Announces Revocation of Welfare Facility’s License Over 7 Million Yen Fraudulent Benefit Claims

The fraudulent claims amounted to approximately 7 million yen in total, disbursed across 17 municipalities in four prefectures: Ibaraki, Chiba, Saitama, and Tokyo. The respective local governments will demand the return of approximately 9.8 million yen, which includes surcharge penalties. This marks the fifth time since July 2025 that Ibaraki prefecture has revoked a facility’s designation due to fraudulent benefit claims and document forgery.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 18, 2026 Number of comments0
Barrier Free Disability Japan SNS Social Media

Japanese Disability Advocate Hirotada Ototake Questions Ranking Disabilities by Hierarchy in Social Media [Podcast Episode]

Hirotada Ototake, who was born with a congenital condition resulting in the absence of limbs (“tetra-amelia”), quoted a post by a user who argued that support for people with mental disabilities should be prioritized over that for those with physical disabilities. He commented, “These kinds of ‘misery comparisons’ or ‘pulling each other down’ are not only meaningless, but actually counterproductive.”

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 17, 2026 Number of comments0
Disability Health Japan Medical

Kissei Pharmaceutical advises “refrain from use” after 20 deaths after using vasculitis drug

Kissei Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. announced that for its vasculitis treatment drug “Tavneos” (generic name: avacopan), 20 deaths have been reported in Japan among patients who took the medication. This figure includes cases where a causal relationship is unclear. On the 15th, the company called on healthcare professionals to refrain from administering the drug to new patients.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 16, 2026 1
Barrier Free Disability Japan SNS Social Media

Japanese Disability Advocate Hirotada Ototake Questions Ranking Disabilities by Hierarchy in Social Media

Ototake, who was born with a congenital condition resulting in the absence of limbs (“tetra-amelia”), quoted a post by a user who argued that support for people with mental disabilities should be prioritized over that for those with physical disabilities. He commented, “These kinds of ‘misery comparisons’ or ‘pulling each other down’ are not only meaningless, but actually counterproductive.”

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 15, 2026 Number of comments0
Care Children Crime Disability Japan Welfare

Saitama disability child day-care support service representative arrested over suspected fraud

According to police, from June 2020 to April two years ago, the suspect allegedly falsified attendance records on 45 occasions for two child users at a facility he operated in Higashimatsuyama City, and is suspected of defrauding the city of about 8.81 million yen, including disability child day-care benefits.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt May 14, 2026 Number of comments0
Abuse Disability Japan

Tokyo Mother Admits to Remodelling Closet to Confine Disabled Teenage Daughter

In a case where two parents and an older brother were arrested on suspicion of unlawful confinement resulting in injury for restraining a disabled girl in a closet, it has been revealed through interviews with investigators that the mother admitted to remodeling the closet to create a confinement space around September of last year. The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) believes that the confinement became a routine occurrence from that point onward.