Changes in Healthcare and Long-Term Care Delivery Systems Toward 2025

「Against the backdrop of population ageing and advances in medical technology, medium- to long-term healthcare demand remains firm.」

「In the healthcare industry in which our Group operates, further expansion of the healthcare market is expected as the population ages and medical technology advances. Telemedicine using information and communications technology and digital-health-related services using the latest digital technologies are attracting particular attention, and companies are expected to provide new solutions tailored to the needs of medical institutions and patients.」

「In addition, 2025 is the final year of the regional healthcare vision. To resolve issues concerning healthcare professionals supporting the vision in particular, digital transformation in healthcare, including data health, telemedicine, AI, robotics and ICT, will be promoted, while initiatives such as task shifting, task sharing, limits on overtime hours and measures to safeguard health will be implemented.」

「The revision identified the need to secure healthcare and long-term care personnel in light of economic and social conditions such as soaring prices and rising wages, as well as the need to improve operational efficiency at medical facilities. It also called for effective use of medical information through healthcare DX, stronger development capabilities for medical equipment and other products through innovation, and the establishment of a safe, secure and high-quality healthcare delivery system through a stable production and supply system.」

「In addition, efforts are required to establish a safe, secure and high-quality healthcare delivery system through initiatives including promoting operational efficiency at medical facilities and elsewhere, advancing healthcare DX and the use of medical information, strengthening the capacity to develop medical equipment and other products through innovation, and establishing a stable production and supply system.」

「In the healthcare industry in which our Group operates, continued support has been provided over the three years of the COVID-19 pandemic to maintain healthcare delivery systems, including exceptional additions to medical service fees, payments for securing hospital beds, subsidies for infection-prevention measures and other costs, and public funding of vaccination and testing costs. With the increase in medical services and testing, medical revenue at medical institutions has shown signs of improvement. At the same time, medical expenses have been trending upward due to soaring prices and energy costs and the need to secure funding for wage increases, while discussions have begun on formulating the basic policy for the next revision of medical service fees for FY2024. As medical institutions continue to face difficult operating conditions, measures to secure a stable healthcare delivery system are required.」

「As reform of the regional healthcare system progresses, the functions of individual medical institutions are changing and consolidation is under way.」

「In the healthcare industry in which our Group operates, medical fees were revised in April 2022, and the development of the healthcare delivery system as part of the social security framework continues to be pursued.」

「Against this backdrop, medical institutions had initially shown signs of recovery from the impact of COVID-19, but the renewed increase in cases placed the healthcare supply system under strain. Some facilities were forced to restrict the number of surgeries and outpatient and inpatient visits, and medical institutions continued to face difficult decisions in response to the prolonged spread of infection.」

「Medical services such as testing and surgery at medical institutions have also shown a steady trend toward resumption and continued implementation as infection-control measures, including testing at admission, are strengthened. Despite the disruption caused by the spread of infection, we believe that regional healthcare services continued to function steadily through the efforts of healthcare professionals.」

「Although funding was secured under the FY2021 supplementary government budget proposal for subsidies supporting the continued prevention of the spread of infectious diseases, medical institutions and other organisations are still expected to explore the division of regional roles according to their respective functions and scale while continuing to provide the necessary medical care.」

「In the healthcare industry, the number of surgeries and outpatient and inpatient visits, which had declined due to the spread of COVID-19, has shown signs of recovery, but medical institutions continue to face challenging operating conditions. Although medical expenditure fell 1.5% in the FY2021 government budget, urgent action is needed to realise the regional healthcare vision, including securing healthcare and welfare delivery systems to address COVID-19, dividing roles among medical institutions according to the number of hospital beds and the severity of patients' conditions, and reorganising hospital-bed functions.」

「In the healthcare industry, the FY2021 budget of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare identified the establishment of a social security system suited to the era of living with COVID-19 as a priority. It also stated that each prefecture would implement the necessary measures in an integrated manner to build a high-quality, efficient healthcare delivery system, including promoting the functional differentiation and coordination of hospital beds to realise the regional healthcare vision, enhancing home healthcare and other services, and addressing the maldistribution of physicians based on physician-securement plans.」

「In the healthcare industry, the number of surgeries and outpatient and inpatient visits, which declined amid the spread of COVID-19, has shown some signs of recovery, but medical institutions continue to face extremely challenging operating conditions. Against this backdrop, the FY2021 government budget proposal included measures to establish a social security system during the pandemic, including securing healthcare and welfare delivery systems to address COVID-19 and supporting implementation of the regional healthcare vision through the division of roles among medical institutions and the reorganisation of hospital-bed functions.」

「Although the feared collapse of the healthcare system has been avoided, many medical institutions have been forced to expand their responses to the novel coronavirus, and efforts to rebuild healthcare delivery systems in each prefecture and realize regional healthcare plans, including securing hospital beds and allocating roles among medical institutions according to the severity of symptoms, have become urgent.」

「In the healthcare industry, the Basic Policy on Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform 2020, decided by the Cabinet in July this year, included measures to strengthen healthcare delivery systems and presented mechanisms for coordinating not only cooperation among healthcare professionals across medical institutions but also the use of hospital beds across prefectural boundaries and the deployment of healthcare professionals.」

「The medical fee revision implemented in April this year identified reducing the burden on healthcare professionals and promoting work-style reform for physicians and others as priority issues, while also presenting the differentiation and enhancement of medical functions, coordination and the promotion of community-based integrated care systems.」

「In the healthcare industry, as various measures related to healthcare and long-term care are promoted to extend healthy life expectancy, the FY2020 government budget proposal was finalized, with priority budget allocations for measures toward realizing regional healthcare plans, including the establishment of community-based integrated care systems, as well as measures addressing the uneven distribution of physicians and promoting disaster medical care systems.」

「In the healthcare industry, preparations are progressing toward the FY2020 medical fee revision, with discussions and consultations being held on a draft basic policy incorporating perspectives including extending healthy life expectancy and promoting work-style reform for physicians and other professionals. In addition, as the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare considers a budget request policy centered on establishing community-based integrated care systems in its FY2020 budget request, various responses are required from individual medical institutions as measures toward realizing regional healthcare plans advance.」

「In addition, directions for reforming the healthcare and long-term care systems have been set out, including the use of ICT and AI and more efficient delivery systems, to strengthen the foundations of the social security system, including the optimization of healthcare spending growth.」

「In addition, the amended Medical Care Act and Medical Practitioners' Act, which came into force in April 2019, introduced measures including the formulation of physician placement plans and work-style reform for physicians, advancing initiatives to realize regional healthcare plans.」

「As measures to provide high-quality and efficient healthcare and long-term care are promoted, the FY2019 government budget proposal was finalized, including new budget allocations for promoting regional healthcare security, promoting the use of ICT in healthcare, and promoting work-style reform for healthcare professionals.」

「In the healthcare industry, as the construction of efficient healthcare and long-term care delivery systems is required, various initiatives toward realizing regional healthcare plans and establishing community-based integrated care systems are progressing, and their impact on the management of individual medical institutions is expanding.」

「In the healthcare and long-term care sectors, budget allocations are being considered with a focus on developing healthcare delivery systems to achieve regional healthcare plans, preventive care and health promotion, and data health reform, in order to realize high-quality and efficient healthcare and long-term care, one of the key requested priorities.」

「To indicate the future direction of healthcare toward 2025, when the baby-boomer generation will be aged 75 or older, four pillars were established: establishing a community-based integrated care system, realizing and enhancing high-quality healthcare, reforming the working practices of healthcare professionals, and improving the stability and sustainability of the system.」

「In the healthcare industry, as the postwar baby-boom generation approaches age 75 and older in 2025, efforts are being made across sectors to address issues such as the differentiation and coordination of hospital functions and stronger coordination between home healthcare and long-term care, with a focus on establishing efficient medical and long-term care delivery systems, realizing regional healthcare visions, and building integrated community care systems.」