Abstract
This study was designed to examine the actual state, issues, and future possibility of meal delivery services for elderly people by investigating the status in each municipality in Osaka Prefecture, within a setting of problems not evaluated from a governmental perspective. The study methods were cluster analyses and cross table. Municipalities were categorized into five types and the issues were: promoting profit-making companies to go into business involving the "large-scale type", clarifying people requiring support outside of the certification of long-term care need in the "home-visit care type", supporting non-profit organization and resident participation type activities in the "potential demand type", establishment of a flexible policy process in the "lower subsidies type", and reviewing available social-resources in the "community type". The meal delivery service has various functions in addition to ensuring daily meals. Therefore, we propose that when formulating policy, the business evaluation will be improved if we can demonstrate that the meal delivery service is multifunctional and cost-effective when formulating policy.
