In response to a series of cases in which patients suspected of being infected with the new coronavirus were refused treatment by the medical institutions they usually visited, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has legally defined the role required of "family doctors" who are close to patients. I started to consider in the direction specified in .
Until now, there is no legal definition of a "family doctor," and there have been cases in which patients suspected of being infected with the new coronavirus have been refused treatment by the medical institutions they usually visit. was an issue.
Under these circumstances, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare presented a proposal for the role of family doctors at a subcommittee on the 28th, defining it as "providing daily medical care and consulting on health management in familiar areas" and specifying it in the law. doing.
As for specific roles, prefectures will report and announce the extent to which they can handle medical care for outpatients, weekends and nights, and home medical care.
In addition, patients who require continuous hospital visits due to lifestyle-related diseases will be able to exchange documents with medical institutions upon request and confirm their relationship with their primary care physician.
Regarding this, some experts say, ``We should devise ways to make it more widely understood by the public, rather than just stating it in the law.'' etc. should be made public in detail.”
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare plans to proceed with further discussions and submit a bill to revise the law to the ordinary session of the Diet next year at the earliest.