TOKYO - Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has proposed raising the upper limit on annual insurance premiums for self-employed people by 20,000 yen starting next year.
National Health Insurance is an insurance system that self-employed people and non-regular employees enroll in.
Premiums increase depending on the person's ability to pay, but there is a cap on the amount.
From next fiscal year, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare will raise the upper limit for medical care from 870,000 yen to 890,000 yen among insurance premiums consisting of "medical care" and "nursing care" in order to respond to rising medical costs due to factors such as the aging of the population.
Targets are high-income households with an annual income of approximately 11.6 million yen or more, which is expected to account for 1.35% of all subscribers.
On the other hand, the upper limit of 170,000 yen for nursing care paid by members aged 40 to 64 will remain unchanged.
The maximum amount of National Health Insurance premiums has been raised almost every year, except for fiscal year 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
