Category: Japan

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 11, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Hospitals Human Rights Immigration Japan Medical

Japan to Tighten Immigration Rules Over Unpaid Medical and Insurance Bills

The Japanese government plans to introduce a “rigorous screening” system by June 2027 that will deny visa renewals to mid- and long-term foreign residents who have failed to pay medical expenses, taxes, or social insurance premiums. The move comes as the Cabinet prepares to approve policies aimed at creating “an orderly and harmonious society with foreign nationals.” A 2024 health ministry survey found that 65.3% of medical institutions accepting foreign patients had unpaid bills, with foreign nationals accounting for 29.3% of debtors but just 1.4% of the total amount owed. Despite these concerns, officials acknowledge there is no nationwide data on insurance payment compliance by foreign residents.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 11, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Forced Sterilization Japan

Japanese man tells U.N. forced sterilization at 14 ruined his life

A child victim of forced sterilization under Japan’s now-defunct eugenics protection law said the surgery ruined his life, as he described his experiences at a U.N. event on disability rights Tuesday in New York. “Because of the surgery, my life was thrown completely off course,” the 82-year-old man, who uses the pseudonym Saburo Kita, said at the event linked to a United Nations conference on the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 11, 2025 Number of comments0
Japan Pregnancy Welfare

Japan to Study Ways to Save More Pregnant Women in Trouble

Japan’s Children and Families Agency will examine ways to have more pregnant women under difficult conditions, such as abuse and poverty, benefit from the agency’s program to provide them with a safe childbirth environment. Assistance seekers include youngsters who ran away from home due to bad relations with their parents, or other guardians, and those fleeing their partners’ violence, agency officials said.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 11, 2025 Number of comments0
Dementia Japan Podcast

Technology and Japan’s Problem with People with Dementia Disappearing [Podcast Episode]

In Japan, a growing number of people with dementia are going missing each year, with many tragically found dead close to where they disappeared—491 in 2024 alone. Efforts to prevent such outcomes include the promotion of GPS tracking devices and the introduction of an orange “dementia help mark,” designed to alert others that the wearer may need assistance. Despite these initiatives, individual cases like that of Yasuko Arakawa—a woman with rare semantic dementia who vanished in 2023 and remains missing—highlight the emotional toll on families and the urgent need for greater public awareness, early intervention, and nationwide support systems in a rapidly aging society.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 10, 2025 Number of comments0
Children Education Health Japan Work

Experts Warn of “June Syndrome” among Children in Japan

Experts warn about so-called June syndrome, or mental and physical distress due to accumulating fatigue over the two months since the beginning of April, when many people start new jobs or schools in Japan. Much like the better-known May syndrome, or May blues, June syndrome is a general term for mental and physical disorders and is medically classified as adjustment disorder. Common symptoms include inability to get up in the morning, insomnia, headaches, abdominal pain, dizziness, nausea, malaise and loss of appetite. According to the education ministry, the number of students who refuse to attend elementary or junior high schools totaled a record 346,482 in the 2023 academic year through March 2024. Although there are no monthly data on the start of children’s refusal to go to school, many say that June syndrome is behind the increase in truancy.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 9, 2025 1
Dementia Disability Japan

Despite Technology, Japan Faces Challenges with its Dementia and Disappearance Problem

In Japan, a growing number of people with dementia are going missing each year, with many tragically found dead close to where they disappeared—491 in 2024 alone. Efforts to prevent such outcomes include the promotion of GPS tracking devices and the introduction of an orange “dementia help mark,” designed to alert others that the wearer may need assistance. Despite these initiatives, individual cases like that of Yasuko Arakawa—a woman with rare semantic dementia who vanished in 2023 and remains missing—highlight the emotional toll on families and the urgent need for greater public awareness, early intervention, and nationwide support systems in a rapidly aging society.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 9, 2025 Number of comments0
Disability Imperial Family Japan Nursing Care

Princess Kako meets people of Japanese descent in Brazil nursing home

Welcomed by the residents of the facility, which houses migrants from Japan and their descendants, the 30-year-old younger daughter of Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko asked how they are doing and called on them to look after themselves. Established in 1958 as the first nursing facility for the Japanese community, it is home to some 60 people aged from their 60s to 100

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 9, 2025 Number of comments0
Hospitals Japan Medical Podcast

Japan to Deny Entry of Foreigners with Unpaid Medical Bills [Podcast Episode]

The Japanese government said Friday 6th June that it will deny entry of foreign tourists who have failed to pay medical expenses in the country in the past. The government also said that medium- and long-term foreign residents who have failed to pay national health insurance or pension premiums in Japan will not be allowed to renew their period of stay or change their status of residence.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 8, 2025 1
Dementia Japan Missing

491 Dementia Sufferers Found Dead in Japan in 2024

The number of people with dementia who were found dead after going missing in Japan totaled 491 in 2024, National Police Agency data have shown. 
   Of them, 382, or 77.8 pct, were found dead within 5 kilometers of the places where they disappeared, according to the data. About half of the total were discovered within a kilometer. According to the National Police Agency, 18,121 people with dementia and suspected dementia went missing in 2024. Most of them were found within a week after missing person reports were filed.

by Michael Gillan Peckitt June 8, 2025 Number of comments0
Japan Para Sports Sports

Tennis: Oda, Kamiji win French Open wheelchair singles

Japan’s Tokito Oda won his third consecutive French Open wheelchair tennis singles title Saturday, defeating Britain’s Alfie Hewett 6-4, 7-6(6). Earlier in the day, Japanese compatriot Yui Kamiji claimed her fifth wheelchair singles title and first in five years with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Aniek van Koot of the Netherlands. Kamiji added the singles championship to the doubles crown she won Friday with South Africa’s Kgothatso Montjane.