Latest news with #Health
Yomiuri Shimbun
a day ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Yamanashi Gakuin University Wrestler Seriously Injured After Eating Alleged Cannabis Cookies; No Illegal Substances Found by Police
A Yamanashi Gakuin University wrestler in May ate cookies believed to contain a cannabis ingredient and jumped from the second floor of a dormitory in Kofu, suffering serious injuries including a fractured skull, according to the university and other sources. The university has banned the injured athlete, who is in his teens, and three other wrestlers who purchased the cookies from participating in official competitions for a certain period of time. According to the university and investigative officials, the three wrestlers purchased the cookies online. In early May, one of the buyers invited over the student who would become injured, and the two ate the cookies together. Roughly three hours after eating the cookies, the youth jumped from the dormitory of the university's wrestling club. He tried to climb back to the same floor and jump again but was restrained by people in the area. During questioning by the university, the student who purchased the cookies said they had become interested in the product 'after seeing celebrities with it on social media.' The site selling the cookies claimed they contained a 'cannabinoid,' an ingredient found in cannabis, describing it as an 'euphoric ingredient' while simultaneously calling the product 'legal.' A Yamanashi prefectural police investigation detected no illegal substances in the cookies. Nevertheless, the narcotics control division of the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry cautioned: 'Even if the products are marketed as legal, consuming them sometimes causes people to lose consciousness and require emergency transportation. Ingesting them casually is dangerous.' Yamanashi Gakuin's wrestling team won the team title at last year's All Japan University Wrestling Championship and fields athletes in both the World Championships and the Asian Championships. An Olympic medalist is counted among the school's alumni.
The Star
a day ago
- Health
- The Star
Foreigners may have to pay lump sum for health insurance in some parts of Japan
A government building housing the Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry. - Photo: The Yomiuri Shimbun file TOKYO: Foreign residents may soon have to pay their national health insurance premiums up front in some areas, according to a plan by the Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry. The move is meant to keep foreign residents from dodging medical fees. National health insurance, part of the social safety net, is managed by prefectural and municipal governments. The programme enrolls people who are self-employed, jobless or under nonregular contracts. Foreigners must enroll if they live in Japan for more than three months and are not covered by any other insurance, such as what they might receive from their place of work. In fiscal 2023, national health insurance covered 970,000 foreigners, who accounted for 4% of the total. As of the end of 2024, foreigners were only paying their insurance premiums 63% of the time, well below the 93% figure for all residents of Japan, both Japanese and foreign nationals, according to a survey by the ministry of 150 municipalities. Under the national health insurance programme, those who are enrolled receive payment slips by mail and use them to pay their premiums. But many foreigners fail to make these payments. The ministry believes this is because they lack such systems at home and do not understand why they must pay into the programme. Members of the ruling parties and the opposition have called for insurance premiums to be paid in advance, claiming that some foreigners who do not join the national health insurance programme also shirk their medical bills. The ministry aims to notify municipalities this fiscal year of what ordinances they need to amend so that they can require advance payment of premiums beginning as early as next April. However, it will be up to each local government to decide whether they change the way they bill premiums. The ministry plans to have foreigners, when they move to Japan and register with a local government, pay a lump sum for national health insurance, such as the cost for a year's worth of coverage. For the national pension, premiums are the same nationwide and there is already a system that allows people to pay their premiums in advance. However, premiums for national health insurance differ by municipality. If foreign residents move to other municipalities after paying a lump sum, the municipality will have to partially refund the payment, which could place new burdens on municipalities. Because of this, the ministry will let each municipality decide whether to require lump sum payments for national health insurance. The health ministry will also begin improving its understanding of foreign residents' payment history. Currently, most local governments do not know whether foreign residents are paying their insurance premiums because they do not know the nationality or residence status of those enrolled in insurance. Improvements will be made in fiscal 2026, and the Immigration Services Agency will use records of premium payments to screen residents as early as June 2027. In the future, the government hopes to make it possible to also share information about whether foreigners are paying their pension premiums and medical fees. If foreigners are found to have not made the necessary payments, the government could refuse to renew their residence status. - The Yomiuri Shimbun
Hans India
a day ago
- Business
- Hans India
Excellent opportunities for agriculture, tourism sectors' growth in NTR dist
Vijayawada: Minister for Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare and NTR district in-charge Minister Satya Kumar Yadav said the district administration has prepared draft visionary action plan for the development of NTR district and its assembly constituencies based on local resources, strengths, and challenges and set the target of doubling the per capita income by year 2028-29. He said the per capita income of the district, which stood at Rs 3,21,651 in 2023–24, is targeted to reach Rs 6,38,946 by 2028–29 and Rs 62,88,851 by 2047–48. He chaired a review meeting held at district Collectorate conference hall on Saturday to discuss district and constituency-level vision plans and Swarnandhra P4 Foundation. District Collector Lakshmisha gave a PowerPoint presentation on the district plan. Special officers presented constituency-specific plans for all seven constituencies of NTR district, Vijayawada east, central and west, Nandigama, Jaggaiahpet, Tiruvuru and Mylavaram. Key areas of discussion included opportunities for growth in agriculture, industry, and services; progress indicators; tourism development; food processing; Zero Budget Natural Farming; Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs); and agricultural mechanization. Guidance was given on what to incorporate into the final plan, with a focus on achieving an average annual district growth rate of 18.5 percent. The Minister said there are excellent opportunities in the district for the growth agriculture, food processing and tourism sectors. He particularly mentioned about Mylavaram assembly constituency, which is well known for industrial growth as well as tourism development. Satya Kumar emphasised that P4 represents a pivotal step in good governance, and that plans were formulated to align with Swarnandhra's objectives. MP Kesineni Sivanath stressed that skill development is crucial to create sustainable job opportunities for youth. He highlighted the importance of setting up an automobile skill training center in Autonagar, Vijayawada and the need to establish new Eat Streets across Vijayawada. He urged support for aspiring entrepreneurs to set up food processing units, and advocated the optimal use of central schemes to achieve development goals. He pointed out the significant potential for growth in Vijayawada's service sector. Collector Lakshmisha stated that all suggestions made by public representatives would be duly considered for implementation. The meeting was attended by MLAs Sriram Rajagopal (Tatayya), Gadde Rammohan, K Srinivas Rao, and Bonda Umamaheswara Rao, Swachh Andhra Corporation Chairman K Pattabhiram, KDCC Chairman Nettem Raghuram, Joint Collector S Ilakkiya, Vijayawada Municipal Commissioner Dhyanchandra HM, and other officials.
Yomiuri Shimbun
a day ago
- Health
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Foreigners May Have to Pay Lump Sum for Health Insurance in Some Parts of Japan
Foreign residents may soon have to pay their national health insurance premiums up front in some areas, according to a plan by the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry. The move is meant to keep foreign residents from dodging medical fees. National health insurance, part of the social safety net, is managed by prefectural and municipal governments. The program enrolls people who are self-employed, jobless or under nonregular contracts. Foreigners must enroll if they live in Japan for more than three months and are not covered by any other insurance, such as what they might receive from their place of work. In fiscal 2023, national health insurance covered 970,000 foreigners, who accounted for 4% of the total. As of the end of 2024, foreigners were only paying their insurance premiums 63% of the time, well below the 93% figure for all residents of Japan, both Japanese and foreign nationals, according to a survey by the ministry of 150 municipalities. Under the national health insurance program, those who are enrolled receive payment slips by mail and use them to pay their premiums. But many foreigners fail to make these payments. The ministry believes this is because they lack such systems at home and do not understand why they must pay into the program. Members of the ruling parties and the opposition have called for insurance premiums to be paid in advance, claiming that some foreigners who do not join the national health insurance program also shirk their medical bills. The ministry aims to notify municipalities this fiscal year of what ordinances they need to amend so that they can require advance payment of premiums beginning as early as next April. However, it will be up to each local government to decide whether they change the way they bill premiums. The ministry plans to have foreigners, when they move to Japan and register with a local government, pay a lump sum for national health insurance, such as the cost for a year's worth of coverage. For the national pension, premiums are the same nationwide and there is already a system that allows people to pay their premiums in advance. However, premiums for national health insurance differ by municipality. If foreign residents move to other municipalities after paying a lump sum, the municipality will have to partially refund the payment, which could place new burdens on municipalities. Because of this, the ministry will let each municipality decide whether to require lump sum payments for national health insurance. The health ministry will also begin improving its understanding of foreign residents' payment history. Currently, most local governments do not know whether foreign residents are paying their insurance premiums because they do not know the nationality or residence status of those enrolled in insurance. Improvements will be made in fiscal 2026, and the Immigration Services Agency will use records of premium payments to screen residents as early as June 2027. In the future, the government hopes to make it possible to also share information about whether foreigners are paying their pension premiums and medical fees. If foreigners are found to have not made the necessary payments, the government could refuse to renew their residence status.
The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- Health
- The Irish Sun
13 symptoms of super-contagious ‘Frankenstein' Covid-19 variant as cases rise in Ireland
IRISH people are being warned about a new strain of Covid-19 as cases rise in the country. The two new strains of the coronavirus, including a "super-contagious Frankenstein" variant, are rapidly spreading across Ireland and the 1 The new Covid-19 strains are rapidly spreading across Ireland and the UK Credit: Alamy The XFG variant, known as Stratus, is now the dominant strain in England, according to the data issued by the UK And the strain now accounts for 10 per cent of weekly cases in Ireland, according to new data from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre. The Health Protection Surveillance Centre recently reported 461 cases and 173 The new Stratus is understood to be more infectious than the previous READ MORE ON COVID-19 This can be seen in the UK Covid-19 cases, as it jumped from 10 per cent to almost 40 per cent three weeks later in the middle of June. The new strain is a descendant of the already extremely virulent Omicron and is referred to as a "recombinant" or Frankenstein strain. This indicates that it first appeared as a new hybrid variation after an individual contracted two Covid-19 strains simultaneously. However, there is currently no evidence that Stratus causes more severe illness, and science shows that getting a Covid-19 vaccine is "very likely" to offer protection from severe illness and hospitalisation, according to Mr Young. Most read in Health Trump signs exec order BANNING virus research feared to have sparked Covid Speaking to the "This could lead to a new wave of infection but it's difficult to predict the extent of this wave." Last month, the SIGNS TO WATCH FOR The symptoms of the variant are similar to other strains of the virus. It includes shortness of breath, feeling ill or being sick, a loss or change to their smell or taste and a loss of appetite. Some infections may show symptoms, such as nasal congestion, conjunctivitis, sore throat, headache, muscle or joint pain, skin rash, diarrhoea, chills, or dizziness. If you are currently experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19 and feeling unwell, you are urged to stay at home until 48 hours after your symptoms are mostly or fully gone. Avoid contact with other people, especially people at higher risk from Covid-19. People are urged to call 112 or 999 if they are very short of breath and cannot complete a sentence.
