By Taisuke Senoo
On January 15, the government and the plaintiffs in hepatitis C lawsuits reached an agreement on blanket relief measures. The plaintiffs and health minister signed the deal. It has been about five years since the plaintiffs sued the government. Under hepatitis C relief law enacted on January 11, the plaintiffs, who were infected with hepatitis C, will receive compensation ranging from \12 million to \40 million per person depending on the severity of the case. The state admitted its responsibility and expressed an apology. People who developed liver cancer or cirrhosis, for example, will receive 40 million yen.
Hepatitis C is a liver disease. If you infected with this disease, the liver cells will be destroyed and liver functions will get worse. Many people do not know that they have hepatitis C until they already have some liver damage, which can take many years. Therefore, it is known that hepatitis C can lead to permanent liver damage as well as cirrhosis and liver cancer. Hepatitis C is caused by the hepatitis C virus. Hepatitis C is spread from one person's blood to another person's blood. People can contract this disease from having a blood transfusion or by sharing a syringe and a needle, such as when reusing needles. Also, it is attributable, in part, to the use of fibrinogen, a hemostatic agent that stops bleeding. Fibrinogen has been used during surgery, childbirth or treatment of injuries.
The government accepts responsibility for failing to prevent the spread of damage and calls for blanket relief for all victims regardless of when they were treated with tainted blood products. However, victims have to prove they were administered the blood products. Medical charts and other evidence are required to prove the administration of such products. The government displays a flexible stance of providing blanket relief for all victims and to not deny the evidence thoughtlessly. The distinction on eligibility may be applied to patients who may file lawsuits in the future. Patients outside of the category would not be entitled to compensation. For patients who may not file lawsuits to be compensated, existence of the evidence such as medical charts is important.
From 2003, it has been obligatory to save the dosage record of blood products for 20 years. Until then, the medical practitioners law states the medical record retention period is 5 years. Few of the medical institutions have clinical charts for patients who received treatment at these facilities before 1990. There are some hospitals that are unable to present medical records to patients. Depending on the hospital's circumstances, it may become more difficult to give relief to victims promptly. At long last, the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry has released a list of medical institutions that had been supplied with fibrinogen. The ministry's action has come too late.
People suffering form hepatitis C are not limited to those infected with the virus through fibrinogen. There are an estimated 1.5 million victims of the disease. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare must come up with measures for all of the people infected with viral hepatitis. As mentioned before, most cases of infection of hepatitis B and C are not caused by the patients, and most people infected with hepatitis C virus do not display symptoms. As time advances, it becomes more difficult to pinpoint where the patients got infected. It is possible to prevent HCV infection from developing into liver cancer and other ailments through early detection and appropriate treatment.
The government and plaintiffs agreed on blanket relief measures. It seems that their five-year-long court battle has finally come to an end. It is gratifying that the stalled negotiations on out of court settlements saw a breakthrough. This agreement is result of the efforts of Prime Minister Fukuda and Health, Labor and Welfare Minister Masuzoe. In order to give relief to all patients, this problem should be thought through thoroughly. In addition, there are many other very real problems, such as the reduction of local health care services and a shortage of medical professions. So as not to make the same mistake, government and medical institutions must focus on taking measures to cover all patients infected with viral hepatitis and carry out tests to uncover infected individuals.