Health Insurance in Japan

I. Health Insurance System for International Students

1. National Health Insurance (Kokusaikan)

National Health Insurance is an insurance program for those who do not have a job. Foreign students who have been living in Japan for more than one year and have applied for alien registration are required to enroll in the National Health Insurance. By enrolling in the National Health Insurance, foreign students are able to visit hospitals throughout Japan (except for some special hospitals) and pay only 30% of the total amount of the medical fee. The family members of the enrollee are also insured and must pay the premium, but the enrollment and payment of the premium is done by the head of the household. You will have to pay the full amount of medical expenses that are not covered by health insurance, such as the "differential bed charge" for a single room in a hospital, the use of high-cost special medicines that are not covered by health insurance, and special treatments such as dental treatments that require the installation of gold crowns, labor and delivery, and abortions, among other things.

2. Medical expense subsidy system for foreign students

This system is operated under the budget of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), and holders of the "College Student" status are asked to register for free at the foreign student department of the school where they are enrolled, and all that is required is a photograph (4cm long x 3cm wide). Students who are enrolled in the National Health Insurance and have the status of residence of "College Student" will be eligible for the JASSO (Japan Student Services Organization) medical care subsidy system. Students will receive a 35% subsidy from the 30% of medical expenses that they are responsible for.

Expenses For Medical TreatmentExpenses For Medical Treatment

1. National Health Insurance

2. Health Insurance

2. JASSO Medical Expenses Reimbursement Program

International students who are not enrolled in the National Health Insurance

will pay 100% of their medical expenses

e.g.

(

1)$400

International students who are enrolled in the National Health Insurance

will pay 100% of their medical expenses. International students who are enrolled in the National Health Insurance

Insurance pays 70%

(2)$280

Student pays 30%

(3)=(1)-(2) is $120

JASSO's Medical Care Subsidy System

(for those who are enrolled in the National Health Insurance and have the status of residence of "College Student")

35% of the amount paid by the student

(4) = [$ 120 X 35%]

.......... = $ 42

Final medical expenses for international students

(those who are enrolled in the National Health Insurance and

JASSO's healthcare subsidy

):

(3)-(4) = $ 78

Warm reminder

_ Medical expenses must be paid up front, and will be subsidized afterward.

_ International students do not have an income, so they pay very little in premiums.

_ As with the National Health Insurance, there are cases where the insurance does not apply depending on the content of the treatment, and you must pay the full amount of the medical expenses that are not covered by the insurance.

_ This system is only available to foreign students who are eligible to "study abroad", and their families and children are not eligible for the medical fee subsidy provided by this system.

3. University health insurance systems.

Many universities have a medical insurance system on campus for the purpose of student health care. The content of the insurance varies depending on the university, so please check with the international student counter at your university.

How to enroll in health insurance

To enroll in the National Health Insurance (Kokusaikan), you need to apply for enrollment at the National Health Insurance Section of the city, ward, township, or village where you are registered as a foreigner, and enrollment is free of charge. You will need your alien registration certificate, student ID card and passport (it's a good idea to bring them with you), and it will take about 15-20 minutes to complete the process. Since enrollment in the National Health Insurance is based on the date of arrival in Japan, if you apply for enrollment afterward, you may be asked to pay the premiums for the period from the date of arrival to the present.

Those who have the status of residence of "College Student" or "Student" with a period of stay of 1 year will be able to enroll immediately, but those who have the status of residence of "Student" with a period of stay of 6 months may be required to present a certificate of residence with a period of stay of 1 year at different places. However, for those with a six-month "student" status, different locations may require a certificate of enrollment that shows the period of enrollment for more than one year. If you have a family member who lives with you, you need to enroll them in the program as well, and you need to make sure that your family member's name is on the health insurance card after you enroll them in the program.

If you change your address, submit your old National Health Insurance card to the government office at your new address and get a new one, but if you don't, you will not be eligible for National Health Insurance.

The cost of National Health Insurance

The cost of health insurance varies depending on the city, town or village you live in, and is about 15,000 yen per year (depending on the taxes you have paid over the past two years)

How to pay your premiums

You can pay your premiums at your local city, town or village. You can pay by installments at your local city, town, or village health insurance office, bank, or post office, or you can pay by automatic deduction at a designated bank.

V. Insurance Card

Every insured person (or every family in some cities, towns, and villages) has an insurance card, and if you present it when you go to the doctor, you will only have to pay 30% of the cost of your medical treatment (or 20% of the cost of treatment for people under the age of 3.) People aged between 70-74 years old will also have a Senior Citizen Card, which is a card that will cover the cost of medical treatment for people aged between 70-74 years old, and a Senior Citizen Card, which is a card for people aged between 70-74 years old. In addition to their insurance card, people aged 70-74 will have a Senior Citizen's Card and will only pay 10% or 20% of their medical bills. The exact amount of 10% or 20% of the medical bill is determined by the income of the insured person (this percentage will be increased on an experimental basis after April 2009 to 20% or 30%, respectively).

Note: Some outpatient medications and meals during hospitalization are paid separately.

Sixth, the doctor's attention

_ When you go to the doctor, it is best to ask a friend or classmate who is familiar with Japanese to accompany you, so as to avoid miscommunication, which may cause trouble.

Many Japanese doctors are accustomed to reading and writing in German, but there are some young doctors who use English nowadays. To minimize the chance of a slip of the tongue, it's a good idea to have someone else accompany you to the hospital to act as an interpreter.

_ Choose a good specialist clinic in your community.

Most towns and cities have large, well-equipped municipal hospitals, but there are also private clinics in the community run by doctors themselves. You can find these specialty clinics in your community - ophthalmology, ENT, internal medicine, dermatology, etc. - but the standard of these clinics varies, from highly qualified to retired doctors, and you can see if there are any patients in the clinic's waiting room. The first thing you need to do is to look at the waiting room of the clinic and see if there are any patients, you can judge the medical level of the clinic.

Japanese names of hospitals (clinics)

Hospital (byouin): general practice

Ophthalmology Hospital Ophthalmologist (ganka): ophthalmology

Dermatologist (hifuka): skin and sexually transmitted diseases

Ear, Nose, and Throat Clinic ENT Clinic(jibika):Otorhinolaryngology

Internal MedicineInternal Medicine(naika):Diseases related to internal organs.

Dentist(shika):Dentistry

If you are not sure which clinic to go to, try going to the main hospital or ask your classmates, they will recommend clinics.

_ Finding a hospital

If you need to see a doctor, you can take a cab and say "Byoin" to the driver, who will take you to the nearest hospital. Most drivers in the city, of course, know the word "hospital" in English.

VII. Consultation organizations in case of illness

If you are new to Japan and are not used to living there, you may feel unwell easily, and you are afraid that you will not be able to find a good hospital because you don't speak the language. There is also a telephone counseling service where you can ask questions in a foreign language.

Name

Name

Contact number

Language available

Response time

Tokyo Metropolitan Health Bureau Foreign Language Medical Information Center Information Service Center

Medical Information Service

03-5285-8181

English, Chinese and other languages.

9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Emergency Interpretation Service

03-5285-8185

English, Chinese and other languages.

Monday to Friday 5pm to 8pm. Saturday and Sunday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

AMDA International Medical Information Center

03-5285-8088

Japanese, English, Chinese and other languages

Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

(Zai

)Nagoya International Center

052-581-0100

English, Japanese

(all day), Chinese and other languages.

Tuesday-Saturday 9am-8:30pm

Sunday, Holidays 9am-5pm

(Monday off)

Kyoto International Association

075-752-3511

English, Japanese, Chinese

Tuesday-Sunday, Holidays 9am-9pm

(Monday off)

Osaka Prefectural Office, Environmental Insurance Division Medical Countermeasures Division

06-3941-0351 (Intercom 2538,2599)

Japanese

Mon-Fri 9am-5:45pm

(Closed on holidays)