Japan set to fully cover childbirth costs possibly from April 2026
Japan's health ministry is set to eliminate out-of-pocket payments associated with child delivery, possibly from April next year, to address the country's declining birthrate, Kyodo reports.
One proposed approach in the policy approved Wednesday by a panel of experts involves fully covering expenses for normal deliveries under the public medical insurance system.
Normal childbirth currently falls outside the scope of the insurance coverage as it is not regarded as a medical condition like illness or injury, although cesarean sections are covered as an exception. Epidurals, in which labor pain is reduced, are expected to remain outside coverage under the proposals.
Since medical institutions can set their own prices for normal deliveries, childbirth costs in the country have largely differed among prefectures.
While the government currently provides a lump-sum payment of 500,000 yen ($3,400) for each childbirth, delivery costs have been on the rise and often exceed that amount.
The average cost nationwide for a normal childbirth in the first half of fiscal 2024 was around 518,000 yen, figures from the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry showed.
If childbirth becomes qualified for public coverage, a unified price will be set nationwide. But obstetricians have expressed concerns that the move could cause financial strain for medical institutions due to reduced revenue.
As earlier reported, Japanese kids' mental health ranks poorly among rich nations, according to UNICEF.
