4.2.3 Financing of health insurance
Generally speaking, the individual’s health care expenditure is higher as her/his age is higher. This is also true in Japan. Hence the average health care expenditure per enrollee is highest in the Medical Care System for Elderly in the Latter Stage of Life (¥844,382 /year), because individuals more than 75 years old enroll in it, as we have already explained. Most of individuals aged between 65 and 74 enroll in the national health insurance, so that average health care expenditure per enrollee is ¥168,658 /year, higher than the ones in other occupation- based health insurances. The costs of the health benefit in public health insurances reflect this difference of enrollees’ age structure as shown in the upper part of the Table 4.2.