Health Spending in Japan Macro-Fiscal Implications and Reform Options

Health spending has risen rapidly in Japan. We find two-thirds of the spending increase over 1990-2011 resulted from ageing, and the rest from excess cost growth. The spending level will rise further: ageing alone will raise it by 3 1\2 percentage points of GDP over 2010-30, and excess cost growth a...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Nozaki, Masahiro
Other Authors: Kashiwase, Kenichiro, Saito, Ikuo
Format: eBook
Language:English
Published: Washington, D.C. International Monetary Fund 2014
Series:IMF Working Papers
Online Access:
Collection: International Monetary Fund - Collection details see MPG.ReNa
Description
Summary:Health spending has risen rapidly in Japan. We find two-thirds of the spending increase over 1990-2011 resulted from ageing, and the rest from excess cost growth. The spending level will rise further: ageing alone will raise it by 3 1\2 percentage points of GDP over 2010-30, and excess cost growth at the rate observed over 1990-2011 will lead to an additional increase of 2-3 percentage points of GDP. This will require a sizable increase in government transfers. Japan can introduce micro- and macro-reforms to contain health spending, and financing options should be designed to enhance equity
Physical Description:39 pages
ISBN:9781498365277