NEWSWORTHY
40% of Japan's health insurance unions on course to dissolve by 2022 as costs for elderly rise
Over 40 percent of health insurance unions known as kenpo, mainly for employees of large companies, are facing increased pressure to dissolve themselves by fiscal 2022, reflecting sharp increases projected for their contributions to the medical system for the elderly, it was learned Thursday. The ...
Two killed, eight injured as man in his 80s drives into pedestrians in central Tokyo
The accident took place when an elderly driver plowed his vehicle into a crosswalk near Higashi-Ikebukuro Station at lunchtime, killing a woman and her daughter.
For Hiromu Inada, an 86-year-old ironman triathlete, age really is just a number
Hiromu Inada is by no means your average 86-year-old. Inada is the oldest triathlete to complete what many consider to be the most difficult race in the world — the ironman triathlon — at the world championships. But with his steely resolve, the Japanese senior ...
From Meiji to Reiwa: Japan's centenarians offer a window to bygone eras
Few Japanese born in the Meiji Era will live long enough to see the dawn of the Reiwa Era, which will begin on May 1, but those who do can offer a glimpse at past generations while providing context for the next. Era names (gengo) ...
15 Japanese arrested in Thailand raid accused of scamming more than ¥225 million
A group of 15 suspected Japanese scammers arrested last week in Thailand acquired more than ¥225 million ($2 million) in illegal proceeds in February and March alone, Thai police and other sources said Tuesday. Records seized in a March 30 police raid on a rented ...
Traffic accidents involving senior drivers are a serious problem that must be addressed as elderly license holders will continue to increase alongside Japan's rapid aging.
A rare breed: Akita dog to be honored for coming to the rescue of elderly woman
Mame, an Akita breed of dog, will be honored for distinguished service after coming to the rescue of an elderly woman in Senboku, Akita Prefecture, on March 23, police said Wednesday. The 12-year-old dog alerted its owner of trouble in the distance while they were ...
Survey finds that half of Japan's home care workers experienced harassment in 2018
Around 50 percent of home care workers reported in a recent government survey that they had experienced some form of harassment from those being cared for, it was learned Sunday. In the first extensive survey conducted by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry on people ...
Number of minors in Japan involved in bank transfer scams jumped over 50% in 2018, police say
The National Police Agency said Thursday that 750 people under 20 years old were involved in furikome (bank transfer) scams last year, up 57.9 percent from the previous year. Of the minors, 76.4 percent received cash from fraud victims by hand, and 9.7 percent worked ...
Police arrested three men Wednesday over the robbery and murder of an 80-year-old woman in Tokyo last month, after investigators found similarities in the case with two other robberies targeting elderly people. Tatsumi Komatsuzono, 27, Hiroki Sue, 22, and Yuta Sakai, 22, allegedly broke into ...
Setsuko Takamizawa is determined to prove that it is never too late to learn as she bids to conquer the English language before the Tokyo Olympics, having been prevented from learning what was considered the "enemy language" in her youth. When Japan last hosted the ...
Reform the labor practices peculiar to Japan
Many of the labor practices prevalent in Japan are quite extraordinary in light of global standards.
