My Number Cards for Health Insurance: Have The Concerns of The Public Been Dispelled?

Editorial

15:48 JST, September 26, 2024

The issuance of new health insurance certificates will be halted in a little more than two months. However, My Number identification cards that functions as health insurance certificates, also known as My Number insurance cards, continue to cause trouble.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has stressed that the abolition of health insurance certificates “is based on the premise that the public’s concerns will be dispelled.” But can it be said now that these concerns have been dispelled? The government should return to a sincere debate on the issue.

The government will stop issuing paper health insurance certificates and other forms of certification on Dec. 2, and in principle, certification of health insurance will be integrated into the My Number card.

After that date, current health insurance certificates can be used for up to one year. In addition, for those who do not have My Number insurance cards, local governments and health insurance associations are to issue a “certificate of eligibility” that can be used in the same way as a health insurance certificate even if the individual does not apply for the certificate.

The government’s rush to expand the use of My Number insurance cards is aimed at promoting digitization in the medical field and helping curb medical costs in the future.

With a My Number insurance card, the user can view the results of past physical examinations and a record of medications they have been prescribed. If doctors can make use of such data, they will be able to provide treatments that take into account the patient’s chronic illnesses. Duplicate medical tests and medications can also be avoided.

Patients will surely be able to receive more appropriate medical care.

As of July this year, My Number insurance cards were held by 59% of the population. However, the usage rate at hospitals and pharmacies is only 11%.

Last year, there were frequent problems with My Number insurance cards in which other persons’ personal information was linked to them. Such problems have been resolved, but there is still no end to reports of patients being temporarily charged the full amount of their medical bill because their identity could not be confirmed due to data transmission errors.

In the first place, in 2016, when My Number cards were first issued, the government urged people not to carry the cards when they went out in order to prevent leaks of their personal information. Now, however, it is asking people to carry their cards with them at all times, claiming that there is no risk of information being leaked.

It is no wonder that, under such circumstances, the public doubts the reliability of My Number insurance cards and the usage rate has stagnated.

The abolition of health insurance certificates was abruptly announced two years ago by digital minister Taro Kono. Looking at the government’s haphazard handling of the issue since then, it must be said that the government lacked a perspective on how to show consideration for the elderly and others unfamiliar with digital devices.

In spring next year, the government plans to integrate driver’s licenses into My Number cards, but it intends to allow current driver’s licenses to be used alongside My Number driver’s license cards. If this can be done, is it not possible to use current health insurance certificates alongside My Number insurance cards?

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Sept. 26, 2024)