Many people at my workplace are absent from work due to flu.
Most people who have the flu have received the flu vaccine.
I’ve never received the vaccine, but I’ve never gotten the flu.
I think this is a very strange phenomenon.
Compared to people overseas, I feel that Japanese people truly love hospitals.
Many people feel a sense of security by going to the hospital immediately and getting medicine, even for mild cold symptoms.
One reason they don’t go to the hospital so often is because health insurance money is taken like a tax.
At first glance, this system may seem like a good thing, but insurance premiums rise dramatically every year, and people like me who never go to the hospital are losing out hugely.
I think only those who want to go to the hospital should pay the fee.
Japanese society has long been characterized by a strong collectivist mindset, believing that everyone is in the same boat, meaning there is little freedom of choice.
Because of this mindset, even when reports state that one in two Japanese people will develop cancer, many people feel reassured, thinking that everyone will get cancer.
Although it has long since ended around the world, many people in Japan are still afraid of COVID-19.
People around me also go to the hospital frequently, and due to the large number of patients, it seems it takes almost a day to complete a full examination.
