Japan mulls having older people partially fund childbirth allowance

The government has begun discussions on having older people partially fund the one-off childbirth allowance that will soon be increased due to Japan's declining birthrate.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has announced that the government will increase the allowance from the next fiscal year, but finding ways to secure extra funding has been difficult.

The general rule is that 420,000 yen $2,900 are provided at the time of childbirth.

Under the current system, people who are 75 or older don't have to cover the cost of the allowance, because it is funded through the national health insurance or health insurance societies set up by companies for their employees, among other venues.

As Japan's birthrate declines further, the government will shift to a system where people across generations will share the burden of covering social security costs.

The cost of childbirth is beginning to exceed the allowance.

Some women in major cities had to pay several hundred thousand yen to fill the gap between the allowance and the actual cost of giving birth.

Members of the government advisory council for a social security system oriented to all generations proposed on Sept. 28 the idea to share the cost of the lumpsum childbirth allowance across the entire health insurance system. On a full-scale basis, the health ministry will start discussions on a detailed review of the allowance.

The government intends to secure extra funding through the health-insurance system for older seniors.

It hopes to gain a better understanding of the burden of social security costs across generations.

The government will look at other ways to get extra funding for the allowance.

It will consider asking major health insurance societies to provide more funds for the allowance to ensure working-age people bear a fair amount of the cost.

It will consider increasing premiums that older people pay for their health insurance.