This programme helps people with severe disabilities who are registered as residents in Hikawa Town. It covers the part of medical costs that goes over the set amount, when medical insurance applies. You must apply in advance to receive support. Money is paid back into a named bank account (called the 'reimbursement method'). There is an income limit. Income is checked every July.
氷川町 Medical Cost Support for People with Severe Physical and Mental Disabilities
This programme is for people (including children) with severe disabilities who receive medical care covered by medical insurance. If the medical costs you pay at one medical facility in one month are more than the set amount you must pay yourself, the extra is supported. You must apply for certification before you can receive this support.
Your own share of costs (revised from April 2024)
Inpatient (staying in hospital): 2,000 yen per medical facility per month
Support amount = medical costs covered by insurance − high-cost medical care benefit and additional benefit − 2,000 yen
Outpatient (not staying in hospital): 1,000 yen per medical facility per month
Support amount = medical costs covered by insurance − high-cost medical care benefit and additional benefit − 1,000 yen
※ 'One medical facility' includes prescriptions filled at a pharmacy that the facility prescribed. If you visit more than one facility, you pay your own share separately at each one.
People aged 1 or older who are registered as residents in 氷川町 and who meet one of the conditions below. (People receiving public assistance are not eligible.)
※ If you have moved out of 氷川町 because you entered a disability facility, you may still be eligible under a special residency rule. Please contact us if you are unsure.
Holders of a Physical Disability Certificate（身体障害者手帳）grade 1 or 2
Holders of a Therapy Handbook（療育手帳）grade A1 or A2
Holders of a Mental Disability Health and Welfare Certificate（精神障害者保健福祉手帳）grade 1
People who qualify for welfare allowances equivalent to: Special Disability Allowance（特別障害者手当）, Disability Child Welfare Allowance（障害児福祉手当）, or Special Child Rearing Allowance（特別児童扶養手当）grade 1
About the various applications
Application form for certification as an eligible person for severe disability medical cost support（重度心身障がい者医療費受給資格者認定申請書）
Letter of authorisation for income investigation（所得調査等に係る委任状）
Something that shows the details of your Physical Disability Certificate（身体障害者手帳）, Therapy Handbook（療育手帳）, Mental Disability Health and Welfare Certificate（精神障害者保健福祉手帳）, or welfare allowance
Something that shows your health insurance details (My Number card（マイナンバーカード）, health insurance eligibility confirmation document（健康保険の資格確認書）, etc.)
Bank account details for payment (passbook or cash card in your own name)
New account registration form（口座登録新規届出書）
Income and tax certificate（所得課税証明書）— only for people who were not registered as residents in 氷川町 on 1 January of the relevant year
Income will be checked for: you, your parents who live with you and share the same household (or your spouse if you are married), and your children.
Changes to your eligibility details
You must notify us of changes in the following situations:
1. Your health insurance has changed.
2. The grade or expiry date on your disability certificate has changed.
3. Your address has changed.
4. You have started receiving public assistance.
Change notification form for eligible persons（重度心身障がい者医療費受給資格者異動届出書）
Your current eligibility certificate（受給資格者証）
Something that shows your health insurance details (only if your health insurance has changed)
Your disability certificate (only if the grade on your certificate has changed)
Loss of eligibility (moving out of town, death, etc.)
If you move out of 氷川町 (unless the special residency rule applies) or if you die, you must complete a procedure to end your eligibility.
Passbook or cash card in the name of a relative or other person (only in the case of the eligible person's death)
Account change registration form（口座登録変更届出書）(only in the case of the eligible person's death)
氷川町 uses a 'reimbursement method'（償還払い方式）. You must apply to receive medical cost support. If a high-cost medical care benefit or additional benefit applies, it must be subtracted from the amount. Unless you are on National Health Insurance（国民健康保険）or Late-stage Elderly Medical Insurance（後期高齢者医療保険）, please submit a document showing the benefit amount. The decided support amount will be transferred to your nominated account on the 27th of each month (or the last working day before the 27th if that day is a non-working day).
※ An automatic reimbursement method（自動償還払い方式）, where support is paid automatically, is not available.
氷川町 Medical Cost Support Application Form for Severe Physical and Mental Disabilities（重度心身障がい者医療費助成申請書）
Receipt issued by the medical facility (required if the application form does not have a stamp or certification from the facility)
High-cost medical care benefit payment decision notice（高額療養費支給決定通知書）(only for those it applies to; not needed if you are on National Health Insurance（国民健康保険）or Late-stage Elderly Medical Insurance（後期高齢者医療保険）)
※ You can apply for up to 1 year from the month after the month you received treatment. (Example: treatment in January → apply by the end of January the following year)
Support covers the part of medical costs you pay yourself for treatments covered by medical insurance, and costs you bear when medical insurance benefits are approved.
[Examples of costs that ARE covered]
Your share of costs for treatments covered by medical insurance
Your share of costs for therapeutic devices when medical insurance benefit is approved
Treatment fees for acupuncture（はり）, moxibustion（きゅう）, anma massage（あんま）, general massage（マッサージ）, and judo therapy（柔道整復）— only when covered by medical insurance
Your share of costs for home-visit nursing covered by medical insurance
[Examples of costs that are NOT covered]
Things not covered by medical insurance (e.g. extra room charges for hospital stays, nappy costs, health check-ups, vaccinations)
Meal costs during hospital stays
Costs related to long-term care insurance benefits
This programme has an income limit. When you first apply, and at the annual renewal in July each year, the income of you, your parents who live with you and share the same household (or your spouse if you are married), and your children will be checked. If anyone's income is above the limit, support will be stopped for the periods shown below.
[Periods when support is stopped]
From the date of your certification application until the treatment month of the first July after your application
At the July annual renewal:
From the August treatment month of that year until the July treatment month of the following year
About renewing your eligibility certificate
Eligibility is renewed automatically. Income is checked every July. People whose income is within the limit will be sent a new eligibility certificate（受給者証）. People whose income is above the limit will have support stopped from the August treatment month of that year until the July treatment month of the following year. You will be notified if this applies to you.
You can download the various forms from here.
Date 2026-01-16 · Last confirmed 2026-08-07 11:45 JST · Translated at 2026-08-03 05:35 JST