By AYAKA KIBI/ Staff Writer
May 15, 2024 at 13:56 JST
Long-term care insurance premiums paid by elderly people are usually deducted from public pension payments. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
Elderly people are paying higher premiums for the nation's long-term care insurance system as payments for nursing care services have risen due to the graying society.
People 65 or older will pay 6,225 yen ($40) in monthly standard premiums on the national average for three years from fiscal 2024, up 3.5 percent from the 6,014 yen for the previous three years, the health ministry said May 14.
The figure, based on a survey of 1,573 municipalities, more than doubled from 2,911 yen in fiscal 2000, when the long-term care insurance system started.
Municipalities, which serve as insurers, determine premiums for people 65 or older every three years in accordance with a central government policy.
Premiums differ among municipalities depending on the amount of required nursing care services and the demographic proportion of the elderly.
Standard premiums for fiscal 2024-2026 are the highest in Osaka at 9,249 yen and the lowest in Ogasawara, a village in Tokyo, at 3,374 yen.
While 712 municipalities, or 45.3 percent, raised premiums from fiscal 2021-2023, 276 municipalities, or 17.5 percent, lowered them. The remaining 585 kept them unchanged.
However, premiums are bound to rise further overall because more nursing care services will be required as the population ages.
The number of elderly people certified as “requiring long-term care” or “requiring support” under the long-term care insurance system is projected to increase from 6.95 million in fiscal 2023 to 7.29 million in fiscal 2026 and 8.43 million in fiscal 2040.
Next year, baby boomers will turn 75 or older.
The number of elderly people will peak at 39.52 million in 2043, according to estimates by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.
Under the long-term care insurance system, those who use nursing care services pay 10 to 30 percent of the costs depending on their income level.
The remainder is covered equally by taxpayers' money and premiums paid by people 40 or older.
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