Health Insurance Act

When the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare finds it necessary in relation to JHIA, the Minister may collect reports on the status of its business or property, or have the ministry's officials enter JHIA's office to ask persons concerned questions or to inspect that status.

The relevant official who asks questions or conducts inspections pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph must carry an identification card and present it at the request of any person concerned.

The authority under paragraph (1) must not be construed as being granted for criminal investigation.

If the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare finds that JHIA's management or execution of its business or assets violates any law or regulation, its articles of incorporation, or any disposition of the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, or that JHIA has unjustly failed to secure income that it should have secured, has unjustly incurred expenses, has unjustly disposed of its assets or has otherwise significantly failed to appropriately manage or execute its business or assets, or that the officers of JHIA have evidently failed to manage or execute its business or assets, then the Minister may order JHIA or its officers to take measures necessary to rectify the violation or improve the management or performance of its business or assets within a specified period.

If JHIA or its officers violate an order referred to in the preceding paragraph, the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare may order JHIA to dismiss all or some of its officers involved in the violation after a certain period.

If JHIA violates an order referred to in the preceding paragraph, the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare may dismiss the officers to which the order pertained.

The rules for the dissolution of JHIA are provided separately by law.

Beyond what is provided for in this Act and any Cabinet Order based on this Act, matters concerning the finance and accounting of JHIA, and other necessary matters are specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

The Minister of Health, Labour, and Welfare must consult with the Minister of Finance in advance, in the following cases:

when intending to grant authorization pursuant to the provisions of Article 7-27, Article 7-31, paragraph (1), the proviso to Article 7-31, paragraph (2), or the Article 7-34; and

when intending to issue an Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare pursuant to the provisions of the preceding Article;

A health insurance society is composed of employers of applicable places of business, insured persons employed at the applicable places of business, and insured persons with optional and continued coverage.

A health insurance society is a corporation.

The address of a health insurance society is at the location of its principal office.

A health insurance society must use the characters "健康保険組合" (pronounced "kenko hoken kumiai" and literally meaning "health insurance society") in its name.

No person other than a health insurance society may use the name "健康保険組合".

An employer who has one or more applicable places of business regularly employing a total number of insured persons equal to or above a figure specified by Cabinet Order may establish a health insurance society for those applicable places of business.

Employers of applicable places of business may jointly establish a health insurance society. In this case, the total number of insured persons must always be no less than the number specified by Cabinet Order.

When intending to establish a health insurance society, the employer of an applicable place of business must prepare a constitution with the consent of half or more of the insured persons employed at the applicable place of business for which the health insurance society is to be established, and obtain authorization from the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare.

When intending to establish a health insurance society for two or more applicable places of business, the consent in the preceding paragraph must be obtained for each of those places of business.

If an application for the establishment of a health insurance society is submitted at the same time as an application pursuant to the provisions of Article 31, paragraph (1), the phrase "applicable place of business" in the preceding two Articles is replaced with "place that will be an applicable place of business" and "insured persons" with "persons to be insured".

The Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare may order an employer who has one or more applicable places of business (excluding those pursuant to Article 31, paragraph (1)) regularly employing a total number of insured persons equal to or above the figure specified by Cabinet Order to establish a health insurance society.

An employer who has been ordered to establish a health insurance society pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph must prepare a constitution for the society and obtain authorization from the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare for the establishment.

A health insurance society is incorporated when it receives authorization for its establishment.

A health insurance society must specify the particulars listed below in its constitution:

its name;

the location of its office;

the name and location of the applicable place of business related to the establishment of the health insurance society;

particulars relating to its meetings;

particulars relating to officers;

particulars relating to its members;

particulars relating to insurance premiums;

particulars relating to reserves and other particulars related to property management;

particulars relating to giving public notice; and

beyond the particulars listed in each of the preceding items, particulars specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

No change to the health insurance society's constitution referred to in the preceding paragraph (except those pertaining to matters specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare) has effect without the authorization of the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare.

If a health insurance society makes an amendment to its constitution with regard to matters specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare referred to in the preceding paragraph, it must notify the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare of the amendment without delay.

The employer of an applicable place of business for which a health insurance society is established (hereinafter referred to as the "establishment") and insured persons who are employed at the establishment are members of the health insurance society.

An insured person referred to in the preceding paragraph who has optional and continued coverage is a member of the health insurance society even if the person is no longer employed at the establishment.

A health insurance society has society meetings.

A society meeting is comprised of society meeting members.

The fixed number of society meeting members is an even number; half of the members are selected from among employers of establishments (including their agents) and workers employed at establishments, and the other half are elected by vote from among society members who are insured persons.

The matters listed below must be determined by a society meeting:

changes to the health insurance society's constitution;

budget for income and expenditure;

business reports and settlement; and

other particulars specified in the constitution.

A society meeting may inspect documents concerning the health insurance society's affairs, request reports from directors or auditors, or inspect the management of affairs, execution of decisions, or revenue and expenditure of the society.

A society meeting may have a person appointed from among the society meeting members carry out any of the matters under the authority of the society meeting as referred to in the preceding paragraph.