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June 01, 2025
 

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MHLW

A busy street in Tokyo on Dec. 30. The number of influenza patients per clinic, on average, in the final week of December was the highest since health ministry records began in 1999.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jan 10, 2025
Japan's health ministry reports record-high flu cases
In the week through Dec. 29, the total number of reported flu cases was nearly three times the number from the same period in 2023.
Authorities are calling for utmost vigilance as Japan heads into the New Year holiday season, when many people plan getaways.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Dec 27, 2024
Flu cases surge above ‘warning’ levels in much of Japan
An estimated 1.67 million people became sick and sought medical care from doctors in the week through last Sunday.
The health ministry aims to improve accessibility, particularly in areas with few pharmacies.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Dec 27, 2024
Japan to allow convenience stores to handle over-the-counter drugs
Under current regulations, OTC drugs can only be sold at stores with pharmacists or other qualified personnel stationed at all times.
In the health ministry's report, customer harassment is defined as "behavior by customers, business partners, facility users and others that goes beyond what is socially acceptable and harms the environment for workers."
JAPAN
Dec 27, 2024
Japan eyes law requiring measures against harassment by customers
A new health ministry report urges companies to create an environment in which employees can work without major mental or physical concerns.
The labor ministry conducted the survey on foreign workers, the first of its kind, in October to November last year.
JAPAN
Dec 26, 2024
Many foreign workers in Japan face high employment agency fees
The survey found that 14.4% of foreign workers in Japan are facing problems or difficulties at work.
Official prices of nearly half of drugs in Japan will be reduced to lower the burden on patients.
JAPAN
Dec 25, 2024
Japan ministers agree on price cuts for half of all drugs
Ministers also agreed to raise the upper limit on out-of-pocket medical expenses.
From Dec. 9 to Dec. 15, there were 94,259 flu cases reported across some 5,000 hospitals and clinics nationwide, according to the health ministry.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Dec 24, 2024
Health ministry urges caution as flu cases rise nationwide
There were 94,259 cases of the flu reported across some 5,000 hospitals and clinics nationwide in the second week of December.
Illegally cultivated cannabis plants uncovered by police at a home in Chiba Prefecture. Revised cannabis-related laws now criminalize the use of marijuana in addition to its possession and sale.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 12, 2024
Japan tightens cannabis laws amid rising youth usage
The use of marijuana has been criminalized, with the maximum penalty for possession, transfer and now usage set at up to seven years in prison.
Currently, if a hospital declines an organ due to logistical or other issues, it is instead offered to a patient at another facility.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Dec 6, 2024
Multi-facility option set for patients awaiting organ transplants
The health ministry aims to address situations in which high-priority patients miss out on transplants due to logistical issues at their hospital.
The labor ministry will urge companies to take action against the practice of forcing employees to buy their own products to meet sales quotas.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Nov 26, 2024
Japan steps up measures against firms forcing workers to buy own products
The labor ministry will define such practices as a form of power harassment and require companies to take action when they occur.
Health minister Takamaro Fukuoka in an interview last week
JAPAN
Nov 24, 2024
Government aims to ease care worker shortages through wage hikes
Staff shortages at care facilities are "very serious," Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Takamaro Fukuoka said.
A screenshot of a health ministry website that allows people to easily calculate the amount of time it takes for their body to break down the alcohol they have consumed
JAPAN / Science & Health
Nov 18, 2024
Japan ministry launches website to estimate alcohol breakdown time
The “Alcohol Watch” website allows people to enter the type and amount of drinks they consumed to calculate how long it will take for the alcohol to break down.
Draft guidelines on take-home bags drawn up by the health ministry aim to change the behavior of both customers and restaurants, and reduce food waste.
JAPAN
Oct 18, 2024
Health ministry drafts to-go bag guidelines to cut down on food waste
Draft guidelines on take-home bags drawn up by the health ministry aim to change the behavior of both customers and restaurants, and reduce food waste.
An office worker inside a commercial building at night in Tokyo
JAPAN / Society
Oct 11, 2024
Widespread overwork and stress found in Japan's arts and health sectors
In the arts and entertainment sector, over 40% of technical staff and stage directors worked 60 hours or more in a week, a health ministry survey found.
Commuters at Tokyo Station in July. In Tokyo, cases of mycoplasma pneumonia, characterized by prolonged cough and fever, rose to a record high of 2.96 per medical facility in the fourth week of September.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Oct 8, 2024
Mycoplasma pneumonia cases reach record high in late September
The disease, which commonly affects children and is usually accompanied by a fever and cough, typically surges in the transition from fall to winter.
A total of 509 patients in Japan had to give up on organ transplant operations last year because hospitals were unable to carry out such procedures, according to a health ministry survey.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 25, 2024
Hospital shortcomings forced 509 patients to abandon organ transplants
A lack of hospital staff and insufficient space in intensive care units needed for such operations were among the reasons.
The third straight annual rise in medical fees reflected Japan's aging population and the increased use of advanced medical equipment and technologies.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 4, 2024
Japan medical costs hit record high in fiscal year 2023
The third straight annual rise reflected the country's aging population and the increased use of advanced medical equipment and technologies.
If the number of births falls at a similar pace in the second half of 2024, the annual total could fall below 700,000 for the first time.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 31, 2024
Births in Japan hit record low for January to June period
If the number of births falls at a similar pace in the second half of 2024, the annual total could fall below 700,000 for the first time.
A government survey has found that 31.7% of men age 20 and older in Japan and 21% of women can be classed as obese.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 28, 2024
Obesity among Japanese men continuing to rise, government survey shows
The 2022 survey found that 31.7% of men age 20 and older had a body mass index, or BMI, of 25 or higher.
The health ministry will seek a record general-account budget of ¥34.3 trillion for fiscal 2025 amid increasing social security costs.
JAPAN
Aug 28, 2024
Health ministry seeks record ¥34 trillion budget for fiscal 2025
The amount was pushed up by increasing social security costs that reflect the country's aging population.
Lessons from India-Pakistan war: Were China's arms overrated?
A Chinese J-10B fighter jet is put on display at the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, China, in October 2016. The short May conflict between India and Pakistan became a live trial for Chinese arms, exposing vulnerabilities in its fighter aircraft and air defense systems.
Former Japanese princess Mako gives birth to first child
Mako Komuro (right), the eldest daughter of Crown Prince Akishino and Crown Princess Kiko, left the Imperial Family after marrying Kei Komuro, a former schoolmate at International Christian University in Tokyo, in October 2021.
Chinese parents are fueling Tokyo’s education race
More Chinese families are clustering in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward, a district renowned for having the finest educational environment in Japan.
Trump to hike steel tariffs to 50% to aid Nippon-U.S. Steel
U.S. President Donald Trump at the U.S. Steel Corporation Irvin Works facility in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, on Friday
Japanese customers brave the rain to line up for cheap stockpiled rice
Iris Ohyama began sales of government-stockpiled rice at a home center location in Chiba Prefecture on Saturday morning.
Atsuko Okatsuka brings big 'dad' energy to new special
Atsuko Okatsuka tries out some of the jokes from her new special, “Father,” at the Tokyo Comedy Bar in Shibuya in January.
How ‘hikikomori’ shut-ins ‘start to have dreams for the future’
Located in Nagano Prefecture, Samurai Gakuen tries to help young and old individuals who have withdrawn from society rediscover their places out in the world.
Halt of U.S. visa process puts Japanese students' futures in question
People hold up signs during a rally in support of international students at the Harvard University campus in Boston on Tuesday.
Mateusz Urbanowicz: ‘Miyazaki inspired me to put the audience first’
Mateusz Urbanowicz’s recent book “Imaginary Storefronts” collects his illustrations of the mundane Japanese street scenes that have given him immense inspiration.
Songs, stars and strategy: Japan debuts its newest awards ceremony
Rock band Mrs. Green Apple performed an emotional rendition of hit song “Darling” on the final night of the Music Awards Japan.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction equipment sits idle in a park near Shiba Toshogu shrine in Tokyo's Minato Ward. While Japan has a history of treating its trees with reverence, green coverage is said to be lacking in most of the major cities.
Do Japan's trees no longer occupy the sacred space they used to?
By Eric Margolis

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Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027
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