Overview
- The government approved an overall 2.22% revision to the 2026 medical fee schedule, lifting the core service fees by 3.09% and cutting official drug prices by 0.87%.
- Monthly ceilings under the high-cost medical expense program will be raised in phases, with some income groups moving from about ¥80,000 to about ¥110,000 and an annual cap of roughly ¥530,000 set for average earners; patient groups warn the increases could prompt treatment abandonment.
- Patients will pay more for drugs similar to over-the-counter products, including loxoprofen, Allegra, certain patches, and gastrointestinal medicines, with about 1,100 items designated and the list expected to grow.
- Long-term care and disability welfare fees will rise by 2.03% and 1.84% respectively, a change expected to lift staff pay by up to about ¥19,000 per month.
- Linked financing for new child-rearing support begins in April 2026, with a levy estimated at about ¥500 per month for employees, ¥200 for those 75 and older, and ¥300 per month per household in national health insurance, offset in part by medical-side savings projected at ¥600 billion.