Editorial

15:23 JST, February 11, 2025

The number of patients transported to medical institutions as the result of emergency calls continues to increase. The emergency medical care system must be protected so that lives that could have been saved will not be lost.

In 2023, there were about 7.64 million ambulance dispatches nationwide and about 6.64 million people were transported to hospitals that way, both record highs. The average time required from an emergency call to the arrival of an ambulance at the scene was the second longest ever at 10 minutes.

About 60% of the people transported were elderly. The number of people transported for emergency medical care will inevitably increase in the future, due to the aging of the population. How to maintain an emergency medical care system that is strained is a nationwide issue.

In principle, it is free to use an ambulance. A government panel of........

© The Japan News