Tokyo, Aug. 19 (Jiji Press)–A Japanese health ministry panel on Thursday agreed to provide medical expenses and other aid to 29 people who filed for damages linked to COVID-19 vaccinations.   They will become the first group of people who receive aid from the Japanese government over health damage related to COVID-19 vaccinations.   The 29 people, aged between….Read more

The male-dominated Supreme Court dealt a double-blow to couples who want to retain both surnames after marriage.   Not only did the top court’s Grand Bench rule–again–that legal provisions requiring married couples to use a single surname were constitutional, it also said–again–that the issue should be settled by the Diet, not the courts.   The current Diet is largely controlled….Read more

Tokyo, June 15 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government in a white paper released Tuesday outlined a policy of using this summer’s Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games as an opportunity to promote a barrier-free society.     The 2021 White Paper on Government Measures for Persons with Disabilities, approved at a cabinet meeting the same day, includes examples of city planning that utilize….Read more

Tokyo, June 2 (Jiji Press)–The number of public welfare benefit applications in Japan rose in fiscal 2020 for the first time since fiscal 2009 in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, a preliminary government survey showed Wednesday.   In fiscal 2020, which ended in March, the number of applications rose 2.3 pct from the previous year to 228,081, according….Read more

By Taishi Sasayama, staff writer   Japan’s minister of loneliness isn’t lonely these days, drawing much attention from media outside the country eager to know exactly what his job entails and if it’s meeting with success.   Tetsushi Sakamoto, responsible for dealing with problems of loneliness and isolation has been deluged with interview requests since taking the job in February, he….Read more

Tokyo, April 28 (Jiji Press)–The number of homeless people in Japan stood at 3,824 as of January, down 4.2 pct from a year before, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said Wednesday.   It was the lowest number since the ministry started compiling such statistics in 2003, apparently reflecting local government support for financially strapped people to prevent them….Read more

Nearly 4 percent of children living in group homes for youngsters across Japan have at least one parent with foreign roots, forcing staff members to confront issues they were not initially trained to handle, an Asahi Shimbun study shows.   The welfare ministry began a nationwide survey on children of foreign ancestry at children’s institutions last year due to a lack of official….Read more

Employees of government ministries and agencies have long been thought to work dangerously long hours–now, they have the numbers to prove it.    A total of 6,532 government bureaucrats put in more than 80 hours of overtime a month–a criteria that can link a worker’s death to overwork–over the course of three months through February, the government said.   Of….Read more

The number of people who take their lives due to anxiety and distress tends to increase toward the end of the nation’s fiscal year in March.   At this time, many people face major changes in their lives, such as entering a higher-level school, getting a job or moving to another place, starting in the new fiscal year. Many companies….Read more