"Just Have Children, the Government Will Pay"... This Country Pushes for Free Childbirth Costs

Japan to Promote "Free Childbirth" Starting Next Year
Insurance Coverage Expected by 2026

The Japanese government is working on a plan to completely eliminate personal expenses related to childbirth in response to the accelerating population decline caused by low birth rates and an aging society.

According to local media outlets such as Nihon Keizai Shimbun and NHK on May 15, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare held an expert meeting the previous day and confirmed its policy to "push forward with the concrete institutional design for making standard childbirth costs free of personal burden by next year."

A man holding a baby is voting in the Japanese general election on October 27 last year. Photo by Reuters

As of the first half of last year, the average cost of childbirth in Japan was 518,000 yen (approximately 5 million won). This figure has been steadily increasing, rising by about 90,000 yen over the past decade. If a cesarean section is performed during childbirth, public health insurance can be used to cover the cost. However, for natural deliveries, insurance does not apply. Instead, the lump-sum childbirth and childcare allowance is used to cover the expenses. Currently, the allowance is 500,000 yen, but experts point out that this is insufficient when considering additional costs such as epidural anesthesia and other common childbirth-related expenses.

However, actual implementation of the plan is expected to face difficulties. This is because it is not easy to calculate a standard childbirth cost due to differences between medical institutions and regions. Current proposals include either increasing the lump-sum childbirth and childcare allowance or applying health insurance to childbirth-related expenses. In response, associations of obstetricians are opposing the application of public health insurance to natural deliveries, arguing that doing so would require aligning costs with the official medical fee schedule, which would make it difficult to set fees freely and could lead to future management difficulties.

Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported that while increasing childbirth support grants is being considered as a way to make childbirth costs free, many believe that simply raising the grants has its limits and that alternative solutions are needed. Asahi predicted that "it will take time to design the system," and that "it will be difficult to apply public health insurance before March 2027."