March 8, 2011
Japanese Communist Party representative Yamashita Yoshiki at a House of Councilors Budget Committee meeting on March 7 revealed that the number of elderly people on waiting lists for admission to special nursing-care homes has reached 420,000 and demanded that the government take immediate steps to construct a sufficient number of facilities.
Citing a survey showing that 130,000 people have had to quit their jobs to take care of an aging family member, Yamashita pointed out that not only the elderly themselves but also their family members are experiencing hardships.
He attributed the situation to cuts in government subsidies to local authorities to build and improve special nursing-care homes. In Tokyo and Osaka, the amount of subsidy in the FY 2010 was half what it was in 1999 when the nursing-care insurance program was introduced.
He argued that constructing 800 special nursing-care homes yearly with a capacity of 100 will accommodate another 400,000 elderly people in five years. The 400,000 is the number that the Democratic Party of Japan had previously promised to solve in its manifesto.
Only one fifths or 400 billion yen out of the portion that large corporations and asset holders will benefit in one year from tax breaks can provide enough financial resources to build the extra homes, he stated.
Yamashita also proposed that the government consider using idle state-owned land to build the new homes on.
Prime Minister Kan Naoto in response said, “I will include your proposal in our agenda to be examined.”
Citing a survey showing that 130,000 people have had to quit their jobs to take care of an aging family member, Yamashita pointed out that not only the elderly themselves but also their family members are experiencing hardships.
He attributed the situation to cuts in government subsidies to local authorities to build and improve special nursing-care homes. In Tokyo and Osaka, the amount of subsidy in the FY 2010 was half what it was in 1999 when the nursing-care insurance program was introduced.
He argued that constructing 800 special nursing-care homes yearly with a capacity of 100 will accommodate another 400,000 elderly people in five years. The 400,000 is the number that the Democratic Party of Japan had previously promised to solve in its manifesto.
Only one fifths or 400 billion yen out of the portion that large corporations and asset holders will benefit in one year from tax breaks can provide enough financial resources to build the extra homes, he stated.
Yamashita also proposed that the government consider using idle state-owned land to build the new homes on.
Prime Minister Kan Naoto in response said, “I will include your proposal in our agenda to be examined.”
