Overview
- The Central Social Insurance Medical Council delivered the 2026 revision to Health Minister Ken'ichirō Ueno on Feb. 13, setting a June start and building on the previously decided 3.09% rise in the base fee portion.
- A new inflation-related surcharge raises basic fees for initial and return visits and hospital stays, including a ¥10 increase to the re-exam fee and inpatient basic-fee hikes of up to ¥3,240 per day, with higher inpatient meal charges (+¥40 per meal) and utilities for long-stay patients aged 65 or older (+¥60 per day).
- Patient out-of-pocket costs will increase, with many cases seeing initial-visit co-pays rise by about ¥114 by June 2027, and facilities sustaining wage hikes moving to listed initial-visit fees of ¥3,160 in FY2026 and ¥3,350 in FY2027.
- Wage-linked add-ons expand to include physicians under 40 and administrative staff, and facilities opting in must file notices with the government and report wage-raise outcomes, with phased implementation through FY2027.
- Targeted incentives bolster hospitals that coordinate with rural clinics and provide 24-hour emergency services, while low-necessity home services face cuts, including a shift to flat monthly payments for hospice-type housing visit nursing that caps receipts near ¥450,000 per resident versus prior levels of roughly ¥800,000–¥900,000.