Japan is struggling to cope with hundreds of thousands of middle-aged social recluses across the country, with municipalities reporting they are critically short of social workers and other personnel needed to help them return to society.

A government estimate released in March showed that the number of socially withdrawn people between the ages of 40 and 64 stood at 613,000, eclipsing that of those aged 15 to 39 at 541,000.

With the Upper House election looming, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Komeito are pledging to promote a comprehensive consultation service for dealing with the so-called “80-50 problem,” in which parents in their 80s and their reclusive children in their 50s are becoming financially strapped.

But people who have been working at the forefront in dealing with reclusive people, known as hikikomori in Japan, say they do not have enough human resources at their disposal.