An Applied Microeconomic Analysis of its Effect of Long-term Care Insurance on Social Welfare : Health Economics Approach

本研究的新奇在于，在日本医疗制度改革的紧迫任务下，对2000年4月实施长期护理保险制度后的经济福利变化进行分析。我们2005年的研究是分析2000年4月实施的长期护理保险对日本国民经济社会福利的影响，利用1998年和2001年的《国民寿险基本调查数据》，以及1997年、2000年和2003年的《全国寿险业调查数据》，对我国寿险业的发展进行了实证分析。研究结果表明，长期护理保险的实施大大降低了日本家庭每月的长期护理支出，降低了日本人的绝对风险规避程度。2006年的老年人健康护理研究从经济学的角度表明，有必要进一步推进老年人的家庭护理。此外，对医药产业的研究表明，日本在2000年实施长期护理保险制度后，医药产业的自由化促进了资本在该产业的集中，但资本集中与该产业企业的盈利能力之间并不存在必然的正相关关系。事实上，该行业中的小型和大型企业比中型企业的生产效率更高。2007年的研究探讨了公共长期护理保险和私人人寿保险之间的可能替代性，结果表明，40岁以下的老年人具有较强的替代性，60岁以上的老年人也具有类似的替代性，根据2005年至2007年期间的研究结果，各种实证和计量结果表明，2000年4月1日实施的长期护理保险制度促进了日本人民的经济和社会福利。

The novelty of this study is, under the urgent task for the revision of healthcare system in Japan, of the analysis of economic welfare changes after the implementation of long-term care insurance system in April 2000.Our research in 2005 is to analyze the effect of long-term care insurance implemented in April 2000 on economic social welfare of people in Japan, by using the Basic Survey Data of National Life of Years 1998 and 2001, and also using the National Survey of Life Insurance of Years 1997, 2000 and 2003. Our results show that the introduction of Long-term Care Insurance substantially reduced the monthly household expenditures on long-term care and reduced the degree of absolute risk aversion of people in Japan.The research of the health care of the elderly in 2006 indicates a necessity of further promotion of homecare of the elderly from an economic point of view. In addition, our study of pharmaceutical industry shows that the deregulation in the pharmaceutical industry in Japan, after the Long-term Care Insurance System in 2000, encouraged the capital concentration in the industry in Japan, but the capital concentration does not necessarily a positive association with the profitability of firms in the industry. In fact, small and large sizes of firms in the industry are more efficient in production than the medium size of counterparts.The research in 2007 examines a possible substitutability between public Long-term Care Insurance and private life insurance with long-term care and its result shows the strong substitution is bound among people aged less than 40 years old and also a similar effect found among the elderly aged 60 and over.As the conclusion of our study during the period from 2005 and 2007, our various empirical and econometric results show that Long-term Care Insurance System implemented in April 1, 2000, promoted the economic and social welfare of people in Japan.