診療報酬、マイナス改定へ　薬価下げ、「本体」微増か―政府

　政府は、医療サービスの価格を決める２０２２年度診療報酬改定について、全体の改定率をマイナスとする方向で検討に入った。薬の公定価格である「薬価」を引き下げた上、医師らの人件費に当たる「本体」はプラスを維持する方向で詰めの協議に入る。
　診療報酬は原則２年に１度改定。税金や健康保険料、患者の窓口負担が財源となっているため、プラス改定の場合は国民負担が増える。政府は新型コロナウイルスの流行が続く中、さらなる負担を求めるのは困難と判断した。
　薬価は、３日に公表された調査で市場実勢価格が平均約７．６％下回っていたことを受け、引き下げる方針が固まった。本体に関しては、看護師らの処遇改善にも配慮し、微増で調整する。（2021/12/06-12:44）

Japan's government is considering lowering the country's overall medical fees in the fiscal 2022 revision, it was learned Monday.
   The government will hold last-minute talks on a plan to raise fees to cover labor costs for doctors and nurses, the main portion of the medical fees, while cutting official drug prices.
   The medical fees, which are covered by tax revenue, health insurance premiums and patients' out-of-pocket spending, are reviewed every two years.
   The government sees it difficult to have citizens shoulder a greater burden by implementing a fee hike, which is bound to result in higher medical bills, at a time when they are already suffering from the novel coronavirus fallout.
   According to the results of a health ministry survey released Friday, market prices of drugs, or prices paid by medical institutions to drug wholesalers, were 7.6 pct lower than the state-set official prices on average in September. The government plans to cut the official drug prices to fill the gap.