TOKYO - The Japanese government wants to abolish health insurance cards by promoting use of My Number social security and tax cards as health insurance cards at clinics and hospitals.
The government is considering stating that goal in its basic plan for economic and fiscal policy, due to be finalized in June. Other My Number card-related goals will be included in the basic fiscal policy plan. These include requiring medical institutions and pharmacies to install systems so patients can use their My Number insurance cards in fiscal 2023, and introducing a framework by the end of fiscal 2024 in which insurers such as corporate health insurance unions can choose whether to continue issuing their own health insurance cards.
Health insurance cards, usually plastic or folded paper, are issued by health insurance unions and similar institutions. In October 2021, my Number cards could be used as health insurance cards. Medical institutions can verify the card holder's identification by scanning the card with a machine, and can also check a patient's prescriptions and medical bill history on a dedicated website or app.
There aren't many medical facilities accepting My Number insurance cards. Some 130,000 facilities, or about 58% of all medical institutions, had applied for a card reader as of May 15. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only 40,000 facilities, or 19%, can accommodate My Number insurance cards. Japan has hardware hurdles to clear before the cards can be widely used.
A nationwide medical information-sharing platform is likely to be included in the basic plan. The platform will have a standardized electronic medical chart format and be a place to share and exchange patients' prescription and vaccine history. The government intends to include this initiative in basic policy because of the fact that it wants to cut the country's ballooning medical costs by applying the digital reform policy to medical institutions' routine clerical work, including invoicing health insurance unions.