Outline of the Medical and Nursing Care, and Health Policy

Materials used in the Third Industrial Competitiveness Committee, Industrial Structure Council, held on April 5, 2010. The materials explain the future strategy for this field.

• Can the Needs for Medical Services, Caring, Living Support for Elderly and Child-raising be Utilized for Business? (PDF:2,480KB)

Outline of individual measures

Program to support collaboration between hospitals and businesses for development and improvement of medical equipment and devices to solve unmet medical needs

The global market for the Japanese medical equipment industry continues growth at an annual rate of about 5-8% and is expected to expand further. By contrast, although the Japanese medical equipment industry is worth \2.2 trillion (as of 2008), accounting for 10% of the global market, its trade balance has been unfavorable in recent years. One factor responsible for this is the situation where outstanding manufacturing technologies of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are not effectively exploited for the medical equipment market.

The medical equipment industry is expected to become a leading sector in supporting the future growth of Japan. “The New Growth Strategy: Blueprint for Revitalizing Japan,” which was approved by the Cabinet on June 18, 2010, clearly positions medical, nursing care, and other health-related industries as Japan’s main driving force of growth.

To improve the quality of medical care in Japan and allow Japan’s manufacturing industries to achieve sustainable growth in accordance with this policy, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has been cooperating with the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in conducting the “Program to support collaboration between hospitals and businesses for the development and improvement of medical equipment and devices to solve unmet medical needs .” Its aim is to develop and improve medical equipment and related devices contributing to solving challenges faced by medical professionals by capitalizing on manufacturing capabilities of SMEs and non-medical industries.

The program focuses on the following issues.
(1) Selection of the needs from medical professionals and contribute to solving their challenges
(2) Development and improvement of medical equipment and devices through “collaboration between medical institutions and manufacturing businesses”—regional partnerships between SMEs possessing unique manufacturing technologies and medical/ institutions facing challenges that can be resolved by those technologies
(3) Support for integrated projects that extend to clinical evaluation for commercialization

Globalization of Japan’s medical services

Provides explanations on the perspectives for the globalization of medical services and future issues.

• Globalization of Japan’s medical services (Overview) (PDF:133KB)

Medical Industry Working Group

The Report of the “Medical Industry Working Group,” which reviews policies for the expansion of new medical treatment services markets, is as follows.

• Medical Industry Working Group Report (PDF:65KB) (in Japanese)
• Medical Industry Working Group Report (final version) (PDF:1,107KB) (in Japanese)
• Points of the Medical Industry Working Group Report (PDF:158KB)

Luxury travel market

A study group was established to work on attracting foreign luxury travelers to Japan. The group has compiled a report on the “Vision of the Future Luxury Travel Market in Japan.”

• Report for the survey project on Japan’s accommodation system in attracting foreign luxury travelers (PDF:3,810KB) (in Japanese)

Support projects for attracting visitors to local areas, and for revitalizing exchange industries

Aimed at building up industries with international competitiveness for attracting visitors and exchanges, the projects support to utilize local resources such as industries with a distinct local flavor, and to create an environment for the realization of high value-added, attractive services for attracting visitors and exchanges.

• Support projects for attracting visitors to local areas, and for revitalizing exchange industries (PDF:198KB)
• The report of promotion projects for concretely creating luxury travel markets (PDF:2,357KB) (in Japanese)

• Publication of Medical Industry Working Group Report (June 30, 2010)
• Establishment of Medical Industry Working Group
   -Review of the promotion of growth areas with strong capability for employment creation and technological innovation- (August 11, 2009) (in Japanese)

• Medical Industrial Study Group (in Japanese)
  http://www.meti.go.jp/topic/data/medical_industry.html

Service Affairs Policy Division, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau
+81-3-3580-3922
Service Industries Division, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau
+81-3-3501-1790
Medical and Assistive Device Industries Office, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau
+81-3-3501-1562