Japan is struggling to cope with hundreds of thousands of middle-aged social recluses across the country, with municipalities reporting they are critically short of social workers and other personnel needed to help them return to society.
A government estimate released in March showed that the number of socially withdrawn people between the ages of 40 and 64 stood at 613,000, eclipsing that of those aged 15 to 39 at 541,000.
With the Upper House election looming, some political parties are pledging to promote a comprehensive consultation service for dealing with the so-called 80-50 problem, in which parents in their 80s and their reclusive children in their 50s are becoming financially strapped.