Japan's fertility rate declined in 2024 for the ninth consecutive year, reaching another historical low. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/06/04/japan/fertility-rate-low/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #mhlw #children #depopulation #marriage

The Japanese government should cover out-of-pocket childbirth fees, an expert panel said, as the aging nation seeks to reverse its declining population and shrinking pool of tax-paying workers. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/05/15/japan/childbirth-free-expert-panel/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #mhlw #depopulation #pregnancy #children

Growth in nominal wages slowed more than expected in March, adding to the case for the Bank of Japan to proceed cautiously with interest-rate hikes as economic risks at home and abroad continue to mount. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/05/09/economy/nominal-wage-growth-slow/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #economy #boj #wages #japaneseeconomy #mhlw

More and more nursing care facilities in Japan are turning to short-term "spot work" arrangements and a compensated volunteer system to meet their staffing needs amid a severe labor shortage. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/05/05/japan/society/nursing-care-facilities-spot-work/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #society #nursingcare #jobs #mhlw

With this year marking the 80th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the welfare ministry has begun collecting testimonies from the roughly 106,000 hibakusha survivors of the attacks. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/04/28/japan/japan-to-collect-hibakusha-testimonies/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #atomicbombings #hiroshima #nagasaki #wwii #mhlw

The number of acute respiratory infection cases reported at some 3,000 designated medical institutions across Japan was 181,270 in the week through April 13, a new national institute reported. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/04/23/japan/acute-respiratory-infection-cases/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #health #mhlw #thejapaninstituteforhealthsecurity

https://www.alojapan.com/1254809/japans-new-health-institute-gives-first-acute-respiratory-infection-cases-tally/ Japan’s new health institute gives first acute respiratory infection cases tally #health #Japan #JapanNews #JapanTopics #MHLW #news #TheJapanInstituteForHealthSecurity The number of new acute respiratory infection, or ARI, cases reported at some 3,000 designated medical institutions across Japan was 181,270 in the week through April 13, a new national institute said Tuesday. This was the first tally of such cases since ARI, a general te…

The Osaka High Court overturned a lower court ruling, judging that the government should pay about ¥6 million to the bereaved family of a man who suffered from pneumoconiosis after working in an asbestos factory. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/04/18/japan/crime-legal/asbestos-high-court-ruling/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #crimelegal #japanesecourts #osaka #health #mhlw

Japan's health ministry has started monitoring acute respiratory infections, including cold symptoms, under the infectious diseases control law to detect unknown illnesses promptly. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/04/08/japan/science-health/japan-respiratory-infections-monitor/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #sciencehealth #health #mhlw #covid19 #influenza

The number of suicides among Japanese elementary, junior high and high school students rose to a record high in 2024 despite the overall figure dropping to its second-lowest level. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/03/28/japan/society/japan-students-suicides-record-high/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #society #suicide #mhlw #schools #children

The health ministry will electronically preserve medical records of victims of the Aum Shinrikyo doomsday cult's 1995 sarin nerve gas attack on Tokyo's subway system, starting from April at the earliest. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/03/18/japan/japan-cult-sarin-gas-attack-medical-records/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #aumshinrikyo #health #mhlw #shokoasahara #tokyosaringasattack #terrorism #massmurder

As Japan braces for another summer of record-breaking heat, the health ministry has decided to make businesses that fail to take heatstroke countermeasures criminally liable. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/03/13/japan/science-health/health-ministry-heatstrokes/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #sciencehealth #mhlw #heat #heatstroke #heatwaves

Workers in Japan have seen their base pay rise at the fastest clip in 32 years, a result that sends a positive signal to the Bank of Japan as it weighs the prospects for demand-driven economic growth. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/03/10/economy/base-pay-gains-fast/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #economy #boj #japaneseeconomy #wages #unions #mhlw

The health ministry has issued a business improvement order to a clinic in Fukuoka, saying a range of stem cell treatments it offers violate the law on the safety of regenerative medicine. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/03/05/japan/science-health/fukuoka-clinic/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #sciencehealth #stemcells #regenerativemedicine #fukuoka #mhlw #health #medicine

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Friday that his government will reconsider its plan to raise the ceiling on out-of-pocket expenses for high-cost medical care. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/03/02/japan/science-health/japan-medical-expense-cap-ishiba/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #sciencehealth #mhlw #cancer #health #medicine #insurance #nationalhealthcare

The number of births in Japan has fallen to another record low, underscoring the growing challenge of how to shoulder ballooning social security costs for an aging society. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/02/27/japan/fewest-births-new-record/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #parenthood #children #depopulation #surveys #familyplanning #taxes #mhlw

Following protests from patients' groups, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said the government will “respond by revising the ministry proposal” to raise medical fee caps, though details remain up in the air. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/02/14/japan/science-health/japan-medical-fee-rethink/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #sciencehealth #mhlw #cancer #health #medicine #insurance

The number of foreign workers in Japan has hit a record high for the 12th straight year, according to labor ministry data. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/01/31/japan/foreign-workers-record-high/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #foreignworkers #manufacturing #mhlw #surveys

Deaths due to suicide among elementary, junior high and high school students in Japan rose to 527 in 2024, the highest level since records began in 1980, with the number staying above 500 for the third straight year. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2025/01/29/japan/society/suicides-japan-fall/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #japan #society #suicides #mhlw #surveys

Informal job offers have been accepted by 84.3% of job-seeking university students in Japan who plan to graduate in March, a drop of 1.7 percentage points from a year earlier. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/business/2025/01/24/uni-students-job-offers-decrease/?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=mastodon #business #universities #students #mext #jobs #mhlw #jobhunting