Japan aims to slash number of hospital beds

 16-Jun-15, The Mainichi 

The government said it will seek to slash the number of hospital beds nationwide by more than 10 percent from the level in 2013 to 1.19 million in 2025, hoping it will curb ballooning medical costs in a graying society.

Image: Wikicommons

The plan was included in a government report on the desirable number of sickbeds, given that too many can encourage elderly people to stay in hospitals when there is no need to do so. As of 2013, the country had about 1.35 million hospital beds.

In the report, 41 of Japan's 47 prefectures were asked to reduce beds, with the largest cut of more than 30 percent requested for nine prefectures, including Kagoshima, Toyama and Kumamoto.

But the report said urban areas such as Tokyo, Osaka and Kanagawa prefectures should have more beds because the population of the elderly people is expected to increase sharply there.

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