The new state-run, nursing-care insurance system for the elderly that takes effect April 1 will begin with simplified "care plans" because the full-fledged programs are not ready, Health and Welfare Ministry officials said Tuesday.

The ministry has instructed municipal governments to first use a simplified calculation system for service costs, due to delays in finalizing the nursing-care program, the officials said.

The simple plans will be introduced to enable the new insurance system to begin "smoothly" and on schedule, ministry officials said.

Glitches, however, are expected, and concerns have been raised that some of the eligible elderly without a plan may not be able to receive services.

The official nursing-care program will outline what kinds of services eligible elderly people can receive, including care schedules and service providers.

Beneficiaries will be divided into those who only need support and those who require nursing care, which will be further classified into five levels.

Beneficiaries can make their own plans under the program, but expert care managers normally will design them for free.

The plans will be formulated upon consultations with users and their family members and updated every six months, all of which entails numerous consultations and considerable documentation.

According to the ministry, the temporary, simple care plan will allow rough calculations to be made of the service costs. The full-fledged care plan will involve complex calculations.

Furthermore, services do not need to be documented in minute detail under the simple plan, the officials said.

The ministry has made the paperwork easier for the time being and provided special work sheets to municipalities to facilitate simpler calculations, they said.

Meanwhile, the ministry is requesting that all full-fledged care plans be prepared and submitted to beneficiaries by mid-April.

Although municipal governments and nursing-care providers are reportedly preparing the necessary documents, some may be unable to complete them in time for the insurance system's debut, due to staff shortages.

Japan has one of the most rapidly aging populations in the world.

In an attempt to mitigate the staggering costs of providing nursing care for the elderly, the nursing-care program calls for all people over 40 to pay monthly premiums that vary according to municipality.

People aged 65 or older deemed eligible can then have 90 percent of their nursing-care costs covered by public funds.

People between 40 and 65 who need nursing care due to age-related ailments or specific conditions, such as stroke-related disabilities, will also be eligible.