12 Mar 08 : The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo and the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan (ACCJ) held a joint seminar entitled "Prevention and Early Detection: Indispensable to Patient Care." Minister of Health, Labor and Welfare Yoichi Masuzoe, Ambassador J. Thomas Schieffer, experts from the U.S. and Japanese governments, key healthcare opinion leaders and renowned doctors from Japan gathered to address how prevention and early detection can improve patients' quality of life ("QOL") and reduce overall healthcare costs. The event was attended by government officials from MHLW, the Cabinet Office, METI, MOFA and the Diet. In addition, there was a large turn out by the media, patient advocacy groups, and doctors and academics from throughout Japan.











In his closing remarks, Minister Masuzoe emphasized the importance of the promotion of the preventive measures and mentioned, “while it is extremely important to ensure that Japan's medical care delivery system enables members of society to live their lives both physically and mentally healthy, it is also necessary to take additional measures and give greater priority to policies that promote prevention."