Japan

Japan has the highest life expectancy in the world, and has a high quality of health care, provided through national and local government. Japan's system is the only one in the world in which rural patients have access to higher levels of health care than those living in urban areas. The system is troubled by excessive paperwork and over medication, resultant from the excessive demand a universal system creates. Furthermore, Japan's ageing population is causing more calls among political parties to reign in predicted rising health care costs. Access to medicine in Japan is high: there are over 50,000 pharmacies. No tariff is levied on imports of pharmaceuticals but there is a sales tax of 5%.