Citation

Shirouzu T. J. Assoc. Life Insur. Med. Jpn. 2011; 109(2): 102-119.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, Association of Insurance Medicine of Japan)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The number of suicide victims in Japan has remained at substantial levels since 1998, when it surged to over 30,000 per annum. The suicide rate is one of the highest in the world. Moreover, no improvement has been observed for over a decade despite various countermeasures taken at the national and local levels, including the promulgation and entry into force of the Basic Act on Suicide Prevention. The rising number of suicide victims also led to a rapid increase in the death benefits paid by private insurers, who have successively extended the traditional suicide exemption period of one year to three years in typical policies. The present report provides an analysis of such suicide trends in light of various factors including motives for committing suicide and socioeconomic indicators as identified by National Police Agency publications and in-house data. It also evaluates the effect of extending the suicide exemption period from the life insurance perspective. Finally, it considers the cases of suicide by mentally-troubled persons, to which suicide exemption does not necessarily apply.

Language: ja