Survey study of the regional difference in the provision of wheelchairs and postural support devices under the Japanese public funding system

Abstract

Although some reports have indicated the regional differences in the payment of the installation costs of wheelchairs and seating support devices by the public system, the specific situation has been unclear. In this study, the number of new grant decisions for wheelchairs, seating support devices, and other related prosthetic devices for each prefecture was counted for the 2005-2019 Report on Social Welfare Administration and Services. Then, the above number was divided by the number of people with physical disabilities who meet the provision requirements, getting a “provision ratio” in order to compare the difference among regions. The findings include the provision ratio of each prefecture varying annually, the comparison of difference among prefectures showing up to ten times or more, and the national provision rate fluctuating from year to year. Though the inability to ascertain the exact number of people who need these prosthetic devices is an issue, this result can be expected to serve as reference material for future efforts to eliminate such regional differences.