Compared to the rest of the world, Japan has a healthy population but pays relatively little for medical care. Taking a comparative perspective, the authors describe the politics of health care in Japan, the variety of providers, the universal health insurance system, and how the fee schedule constrains costs. Special attention is paid to issues of quality, to the difficult problems of assuring adequate high-tech medicine and long-term care, and to possible lessons for the United States.

Compared to the rest of the world, Japan has a healthy population but pays relatively little for medical care. Taking a comparative perspective, the authors describe the politics of health care in Japan, the variety of providers, the universal health insurance system, and how the fee schedule constrains costs. Special attention is paid to issues of quality, to the difficult problems of assuring adequate high-tech medicine and long-term care, and to possible lessons for the United States.

The aging of society is a growing concern in all advanced nations, and at the forefront of concern is long-term care for frail older people. Enactment of a new public long-term care insurance program by the Japanese government in 1997 provided an excellent opportunity for a conference focusing on an ideal long-term care system for frail older people. The conference was organized around four major themes: Social aspects, including family dynamics and the role of formal providers; Clinical aspects, including effective treatments for physical and mental disabilities; Macroeconomic and...

The aging of society is a growing concern in all advanced nations, and at the forefront of concern is long-term care for frail older people. Enactment of a new public long-term care insurance program by the Japanese government in 1997 provided an excellent opportunity for a conference focusing on an ideal long-term care system for frail older people. The conference was organized around four major themes: Social aspects, including family dynamics and the role of formal providers; Clinical aspects, including effective treatments for physical and mental disabilities; Macroeconomic and...

The goals of universal health coverage (UHC) are to ensure that all people can access quality health services, to safeguard all people from public health risks, and to protect all people from impoverishment due to illness, whether from out-of-pocket payments for health care or loss of income when a household member falls sick. Countries as diverse as Brazil, France, Japan, Thailand, and Turkey have shown how UHC can serve as a vital mechanism for improving the health and welfare of their citizens and lay the foundation for economic growth and competitiveness grounded in the principles of...