Regarding remedies that provide benefits to people infected with hepatitis B due to mass vaccination, the government said that many people have not taken the necessary procedures until January next year. The policy is to extend the deadline by 5 years.
Hepatitis B was spread by mass vaccination without changing syringes for 40 years until 1988, so the government acknowledged responsibility and provided a maximum of 36 million yen per person nine years ago. The Special Measures Law, which includes paying money, has been enforced.
The deadline for claiming benefits is January next year, ten years after the law came into effect, but as of the end of October last year, 18 of the approximately 450,000 people expected to be eligible for the procedure. There are only 82,000 people, which is a percentage.
For this reason, the government plans to extend the deadline by five years until the end of March 1997, saying that many people have not taken the necessary procedures.
To receive the payment, court approval is required, but the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare believes that there are cases where the relief system is unaware or asymptomatic and unaware of the infection.
The government will submit a bill to amend the law to extend the deadline to the ordinary session of the Diet, which will be convened on the 18th next week, and will promote the awareness of the relief system.