This month, a new law is going into force in Japan, which will benefit rights for the elderly. The revised disability support laws will in effect decrease the price that the elderly need to pay out of their own pockets for public nursing care insurance.
In more detail, what this will mean is that should there be an available similar service, nursing care insurance gets priority. But it is up to the discretion of municipal governments to determine who – with disabilities – will be entitled to various welfare services. And the other issue is that while they might be entitled to it, actually getting it is another matter and bureaucracy etc., can add to the waiting time.
Then there are those who need services that are not included in the coverage and the ones who are not entitled at all are those who have intellectual disabilities.
Given that Japan has one of the world’s highest life expectancies (at 84 years old), it is essential that laws assisting this demographic be put in force.
