More than 1.07 million loans from the new Corona country More than five times as many as three years after Lehman September 20, 18:46

It was found that the number of loans from March has reached more than 1.07 million under the national system that allows people whose income has decreased due to the effects of the new coronavirus to borrow living expenses for the time being.

It is more than five times the number of loans in the three years after the Lehman shock, and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare says, "We would like to continue to provide prompt support to protect our lives and lives."

More than 1.07 million payment decisions, more than 352.4 billion yen

The "emergency small-lot fund" and "comprehensive support fund" systems, which allow people in need of living to borrow their living expenses for the time being, have reduced their income due to unemployment and leave due to the effects of the new coronavirus since March. It is targeted, and social welfare councils nationwide serve as the contact point for accepting applications.



According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, the number of applications was 1,115,868 from March 25 to this month, of which 1,072,646 were decided to be paid, amounting to more than 352.4 billion yen. is.



The number of loans for the three years from 2009 after the Lehman shock was about 205,000, which has already more than quintupled in the five months since March.



The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare said, "As the effects of the new coronavirus continue to prolong, it seems that many people will continue to apply for the use of the system. We will continue to provide prompt support to protect our lives and lives." I will.

System user "Isn't it really difficult from now on?"

A 79-year-old woman who lives alone in a metropolitan house in Tokyo cannot live on a pension of about 67,000 yen a month, so she registered with the Silver Human Resources Center and has three cleaning jobs. I have worked.

The income is about 70,000 yen a month, and the amount that can be used for living expenses is about 130,000 yen including the pension.



Due to low income, the rent of the metropolitan housing is exempted to 5,000 yen a month, but even so, if you spend it on food and utilities, you can hardly save money and have continued to live on the last minute.

However, due to the influence of the new coronavirus, the cleaning work has decreased, and the monthly income has been reduced to about 30,000 yen, which is less than half.



At that time, I had only about 100,000 yen in cash and received a special fixed amount of 100,000 yen from the government, but I thought that I might not be able to live as it is, so in May, I received an emergency small amount of funds. I borrowed 200,000 yen using.



The woman said, "I was worried that I would be able to live without any prospect of what would happen to my future work, so I was really grateful that I was able to use the loan."



However, even after that, the cleaning work did not return to its original state and the income continued to decrease significantly, so the total of savings, national benefits, and the loan of the Council of Social Welfare, totaling more than 400,000 yen, was gradually withdrawn. I am living.



In addition, the woman has been diagnosed with cataract and has no subjective symptoms yet, but doctors have told her to undergo surgery as soon as possible to prevent the disease from progressing.

Since it costs about 50,000 yen for surgery etc., the amount of money left on hand will be even less.

Even if I ask the Silver Human Resources Center to introduce me to a new job, I feel that it may be difficult as the number of job offers decreases due to the influence of the new coronavirus.



The woman said, "I used to live a life that I couldn't cut down anymore, but fortunately my body was fine and I thought that I would be able to do something if I worked. However, if the effects of the new coronavirus continue in the future, I think it's going to be really difficult, "he said.

Expert "Support for reemployment If you cannot rebuild your life, you can also protect your life"

Professor Taku Okabe of Meiji University, who is familiar with the current state of the system, said, "Many people have been able to avoid difficulties in their lives by using the emergency small-lot fund and comprehensive support fund system, and I think this is an effective measure for emergency evacuation. I'm talking.



On top of that, "The system originally requires lending money from the country and support for rebuilding lives, but nowadays, there are many paper applications to help people who are having difficulty living as soon as possible. Therefore, it is difficult to respond to detailed consultations. Therefore, it is not possible to determine what kind of difficulties you have in your life and whether the conditions for rebuilding your life are in place. " I will.



He also said, "If the loan period is long, it will put pressure on future households due to repayment. For those who have lost their jobs, it is difficult to earn income unless they can re-employ. While supporting reemployment such as matching with companies that make use of the person's skills and experience to support reemployment, if you can not rebuild your life immediately, you will also need to use welfare protection. " I am.

Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare decided to extend special measures until the end of December

The "emergency small-lot fund" and "comprehensive support fund" are for the purpose of helping people who have lost their jobs to rebuild their lives by temporarily borrowing living expenses from the government for the time being. Applications are being accepted next door.

These systems, which comprehensively support independence together with housing cost benefits and employment support, are also called "second safety nets."



The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has been taking special measures for "emergency small-lot funds" and "comprehensive support funds" since March, such as targeting people whose income has decreased due to unemployment or leave due to the effects of the new coronavirus. ..



"Emergency small amount funds" can be borrowed without interest, the upper limit has been raised from 100,000 yen to 200,000 yen, and the repayment deadline is within 1 to 2 years.

In addition, "Comprehensive Support Fund" can be borrowed up to 200,000 yen per month for households with two or more people, and up to 150,000 yen per month for single-person households, both of which are interest-free for three months.

You can extend the period by another 3 months if necessary, and the repayment deadline is 10 years or less.



The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare had set these special measures until the end of this month, but decided to extend them until the end of December due to the ongoing effects of the new coronavirus.

Of these, regarding "comprehensive support funds," from the 1st of next month, it will be necessary to receive support from a specialized window called an "independence consultation support organization" such as a local government for reemployment and life reconstruction. is.

The social welfare council at the counter

From March to the 14th of this month, the Ota Ward Council of Social Welfare in Tokyo has received a total of 12,098 applications for emergency small-lot funds and comprehensive support funds.



Looking at the breakdown of applicants, there are many self-employed people such as restaurant owners and non-regular employees such as temporary staff, part-time workers, and part-time workers.



Due to the influence of the new coronavirus, lending requirements have been relaxed, and in order to respond to the rapidly increasing needs, we receive support from other departments and ward offices, and we have about 20 people, which is nearly seven times the normal number, for telephone consultation and interview consultation. From March to the 14th of this month, the total number of consultations was 43,447.



However, in order to avoid congestion at the counter due to infection prevention measures, interviews are accepted for elderly people, foreigners, and other people who need support when applying, and for others, applications are accepted by mail.



A 65-year-old man who visited the meeting last month used emergency small-lot funds in June, but this time he plans to borrow money using comprehensive support funds.



The man said, "I'm out of work, so I'm looking for it through Hello Work, but I can't find it easily because there is no job offer. I'm in trouble because I can't see the future."



Increasingly, there are increasing cases of being unable to re-employ or having incomes declining, and in principle, the total support fund has been extended for three months, and the number of loans received for six months has increased to 1321. It was.



The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare requires that when extending a loan with comprehensive support funds, it will receive the support of an "independence consultation support organization" such as a local government that supports reemployment and life reconstruction.

However, at present, most applications are sent by mail, and it is not possible to grasp the situation of each person in detail.



For this reason, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare will receive support from the "Independence Counseling Support Organization" from the 1st of next month for both the case of applying for a new loan and the case of extending the period. I have decided to make it a requirement.



At the Ota Ward Council of Social Welfare, the number of applications for the system has already increased more than 100 times last year, and we are wondering what kind of support we can provide for rebuilding and repayment of our lives.



Sachiko Ishikawa of the Ota Ward Council of Social Welfare said, "Up until now, we have focused on lending as quickly as possible using the simplest application method, but as a social welfare council, we will be close to each person and give them an idea of ​​their living conditions. I also have a desire to listen carefully and support the reconstruction of my life, so I feel sick because I can't do that. However, in order to face each person, the number of staff and the place of interviews are necessary, and there are many issues. I think there is. "