Socioeconomic disparities in risk perceptions and precautionary actions against COVID-19 among the working age population aged 18-59 in Japan: a cross-sectional study.

Introduction: Risk perceptions and precautionary actions against COVID-19 have been reported to be generally insufficient globally, and differences by subpopulation group have been concerning, as a key driver to widening health gaps. Although a body of literature examined these key constructs, critical comparative examinations of various risk perceptions and precautionary actions by socioeconomic group are still limited in Japan and Asia.

Methods: This study examines subjective and objective risk perceptions and precautionary actions against COVID-19 infection among the general working age population aged 18-59 in Japan, focusing on the differences by socioeconomic group and health status.

Income receipt, economic activities, and health: Evidence from ambulance transport patterns.

Studies indicate that mortality increases after income receipt. To explore whether this is due to increased economic activity around the period of receiving income, we examine within-month patterns in ambulance transport incidents, focusing on location and timing. Using Japan's National Pension payments made every two months, we compare the number of ambulance transport incidents on the day of pension payment and on surrounding days in payment months with those in non-payment months.

The relationship between long COVID, labor productivity, and socioeconomic losses in Japan: A cohort study.

Objectives: We examined shifts in labor productivity and their economic ramifications among adult patients with long COVID in Japan.

Methods: A total of 396 patients were categorized into three groups based on symptom progression: non-long COVID, long COVID recovered, and long COVID persistent. Patient-reported outcomes were assessed at three time intervals: 3, 6, and 12 months after COVID-19 diagnosis.

Wealth inequalities in physical and cognitive impairments across Japan and Europe: the role of health expenditure and infrastructure.

Although prior research has provided insights into the association between country-level factors and health inequalities, key research gaps remain. First, most previous studies examine subjective rather than objective health measures. Second, the wealth dimension in health inequalities is understudied.

Understanding the effects of informal caregiving on health and well-being: Heterogeneity and mechanisms.

This study examines the heterogenous effects of informal caregiving on caregivers' health and well-being and the mechanisms of the effects, which remain largely undiscussed in previous literature. We used a combined estimation of fixed effects and the instrumental variables to address unobserved time-invariant individual characteristics and the endogeneity problem between caregivers' health and caregiving status. Using data from the four waves of the Japanese Study of Aging and Retirement collected in 2007, 2009, 2011, and 2013, and covering individuals aged 50 to 75 at the baselines, we found robust evidence of the negative effects of informal caregiving on caregivers' mental health and life satisfaction, but not on their physical health.

Mixing age and risk groups for accessing COVID-19 vaccines: a modelling study.

Objective: To characterise the optimal targeting of age and risk groups for COVID-19 vaccines.

Design: Motivated by policies in Japan and elsewhere, we consider rollouts that target a mix of age and risk groups when distributing the vaccines. We identify the optimal group mix for three policy objectives: reducing deaths, reducing cases and reducing severe cases.

Social contact patterns in Japan in the COVID-19 pandemic during and after the Tokyo Olympic Games.

Background: Social contact data in Japan have not been updated since 2011. The main objectives of this study are to report on newly collected social contact data, to study mixing patterns in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to compare the contact patterns during and after mass events like the 2020 Olympic Games, which were held in 2021.

Methods: We compared the number of contacts per day during and after the Olympic Games and on weekdays and weekends; we also compared them with a pre-COVID-19 pandemic social contact study in Japan.

Health inequity in pandemic anxiety about COVID-19 infection and socioeconomic consequences in Japan: A structural equation modeling approach.

Background: Health inequity in relation to COVID-19 infection and socioeconomic consequences is a major global concern. Mental health issues in vulnerable populations have received special attention in research and practice during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there is limited evidence on the nature of the anxieties experienced as a result of COVID-19, and how such concerns vary across demographic groups.

Socioeconomic status and the likelihood of informal care provision in Japan: An analysis considering survival probability of care recipients.

Studies show that the burden of caregiving tends to fall on individuals of low socioeconomic status (SES); however, the association between SES and the likelihood of caregiving has not yet been established. We studied the relationship between SES and the likelihood of adults providing long-term care for their parents in Japan, where compulsory public long-term insurance has been implemented. We used the following six comprehensive measures of SES for the analysis: income, financial assets, expenditure, living conditions, housing conditions, and education.

Interdependency in vaccination policies among Japanese municipalities.

Economic theory predicts that vaccination policies at the local level can be negatively affected by the policies of neighboring regions because of free-riding motives, whereas positive dependency may exist due to policy diffusions among localities. By using the unique variations in the provision of vaccination subsidies in Japan, we assess how vaccination policies in a local government are affected by the decisions of neighboring governments. We find that the provision of vaccination subsidies is positively correlated with the decisions of neighboring localities.

End-Of-Life Medical Spending In Last Twelve Months Of Life Is Lower Than Previously Reported.

Although end-of-life medical spending is often viewed as a major component of aggregate medical expenditure, accurate measures of this type of medical spending are scarce. We used detailed health care data for the period 2009-11 from Denmark, England, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Taiwan, the United States, and the Canadian province of Quebec to measure the composition and magnitude of medical spending in the three years before death. In all nine countries, medical spending at the end of life was high relative to spending at other ages.

Out-of-pocket payments and community-wide health outcomes: an examination of influenza vaccination subsidies in Japan.

While studies have shown that reductions in out-of-pocket payments for vaccination generally encourages vaccination uptake, research on the impact on health outcomes has rarely been examined. Thus, the present study, using municipal-level survey data on a subsidy programme for influenza vaccination in Japan that covers the entire country, examines how reductions in out-of-pocket payments for vaccination among non-elderly individuals through a subsidy programme affected regional-level influenza activity. We find that payment reductions are negatively correlated with the number of weeks with a high influenza alert in that region, although the correlation varied across years.

Social contacts, vaccination decisions and influenza in Japan.

Background: Contact patterns and vaccination decisions are fundamental to transmission dynamics of infectious diseases. We report on age-specific contact patterns in Japan and their effect on influenza vaccination behaviour.

Methods: Japanese adults (N=3146) were surveyed in Spring 2011 to assess the number of their social contacts within a 24 h period, defined as face-to-face conversations within 2 m, and gain insight into their influenza-related behaviour.

Free-riding behavior in vaccination decisions: an experimental study.

Individual decision-making regarding vaccination may be affected by the vaccination choices of others. As vaccination produces externalities reducing transmission of a disease, it can provide an incentive for individuals to be free-riders who benefit from the vaccination of others while avoiding the cost of vaccination. This study examined an individual's decision about vaccination in a group setting for a hypothetical disease that is called "influenza" using a computerized experimental game.

Reevaluation of epidemiological data demonstrates that it is consistent with cross-immunity among human papillomavirus types.

Background: The degree of cross-immunity between human papillomavirus (HPV) types is fundamental both to the epidemiological dynamics of HPV and to the impact of HPV vaccination. Epidemiological data on HPV infections has been repeatedly interpreted as inconsistent with cross-immunity.

Methods: We reevaluate the epidemiological data using a model to determine the odds ratios of multiple to single infections expected in the presence or absence of cross-immunity.

Using game theory to examine incentives in influenza vaccination behavior.

The social good often depends on the altruistic behavior of specific individuals. For example, epidemiological studies of influenza indicate that elderly individuals, who face the highest mortality risk, are best protected by vaccination of young individuals, who contribute most to disease transmission. To examine the conditions under which young people would get vaccinated to protect elderly people, we conducted a game-theory experiment that mirrored real-world influenza transmission, with "young" players contributing more than "elderly" players to herd immunity.

Real-time prescription surveillance and its application to monitoring seasonal influenza activity in Japan.

Background: Real-time surveillance is fundamental for effective control of disease outbreaks, but the official sentinel surveillance in Japan collects information related to disease activity only weekly and updates it with a 1-week time lag.

Objective: To report on a prescription surveillance system using electronic records related to prescription drugs that was started in 2008 in Japan, and to evaluate the surveillance system for monitoring influenza activity during the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 influenza seasons.

Methods: We developed an automatic surveillance system using electronic records of prescription drug purchases collected from 5275 pharmacies through the application service provider's medical claims service.

How much time do adults spend on health-related self-care? Results from the American time use survey.

Background: The amount of time individuals spend on health-related self-care is not known.

Objective: The aim of this study was to describe how much time American adults reported spending on health-related self-care (eg, taking insulin, dressing a wound).

Methods: We analyzed data from the first 5 years, 2003 to 2007, of the population-based American Time Use Survey.

Who got vaccinated against H1N1 pandemic influenza? A longitudinal study in four U.S. cities.

The recent H1N1 pandemic influenza stimulated numerous studies into the attitudes and intentions about the H1N1 vaccine. However, no study has investigated prospective predictors of vaccination behaviour. We conducted a two-wave longitudinal study among residents in four U.

The dynamics of risk perceptions and precautionary behavior in response to 2009 (H1N1) pandemic influenza.

Background: The trajectory of an infectious disease outbreak is affected by the behavior of individuals, and the behavior is often related to individuals' risk perception. We assessed temporal changes and geographical differences in risk perceptions and precautionary behaviors in response to H1N1 influenza.

Methods: 1,290 US adults completed an online survey on risk perceptions, interests in pharmaceutical interventions (preventive intervention and curative intervention), and engagement in precautionary activities (information seeking activities and taking quarantine measures) in response to H1N1 influenza between April 28 and May 27 2009.

Inventory of data sources for estimating health care costs in the United States.

Objective: To develop an inventory of data sources for estimating health care costs in the United States and provide information to aid researchers in identifying appropriate data sources for their specific research questions.

Methods: We identified data sources for estimating health care costs using 3 approaches: (1) a review of the 18 articles included in this supplement, (2) an evaluation of websites of federal government agencies, non profit foundations, and related societies that support health care research or provide health care services, and (3) a systematic review of the recently published literature. Descriptive information was abstracted from each data source, including sponsor, website, lowest level of data aggregation, type of data source, population included, cross-sectional or longitudinal data capture, source of diagnosis information, and cost of obtaining the data source.