Japan Ministry of Health reports on nursing care and My Number insurance card usage

A recent survey by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare shows that over 90% of surveyed long-term care facilities, including special elderly nursing homes, geriatric health services facilities, and medical long-term care sanatoriums, have established cooperative medical institutions that meet national requirements. Specifically, 90.7% of special elderly nursing homes, 94.6% of geriatric health services facilities, and 93.8% of medical long-term care sanatoriums met the criteria.

These requirements, mandated by the 2024 long-term care benefit revision, include maintaining systems for constant consultation, medical treatment, and accepting resident hospitalizations. While the survey shows high compliance among respondents, official nationwide data based on local government filings shows lower rates, with special elderly nursing homes at 79.6%, geriatric health services facilities at 85.5%, and medical long-term care sanatoriums at 81.9%.

Separately, data released by the Ministry indicates that the utilization rate of the My Number insurance card reached 68.15% as of April 2026. Usage rates vary significantly by prefecture, ranging from a high of 77.91% in Toyama to a low of 55.31% in Okinawa.