17th Cardiovascular Disease Control Council Minutes
Overview
At the 17th Council for Promotion of Cardiovascular Disease Control meeting, member Yoshio Kobayashi was elected chair and member Shigeru Fujimoto vice-chair, and the draft interim evaluation report for the Second Basic Plan for Promotion of Cardiovascular Disease Control was discussed. The evaluation method and progress toward the overall targets were explained, and members commented on clarity of terminology, information gathering during emergency transport, and support for hospital admissions and discharges. The draft report will be published after final wording adjustments.
Key points
- The main agenda items were selection of the chair and “the draft interim evaluation report for the Second Basic Plan for Promotion of Cardiovascular Disease Control.”
- Member Yoshio Kobayashi was selected as chair, and member Shigeru Fujimoto as vice-chair.
- The chair was entrusted with final wording adjustments, and the policy was to publish the interim evaluation report after coordination with the secretariat.
Overview
The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s 17th Council for Promotion of Cardiovascular Disease Control meeting was held on October 2, 2026, with 15 of 19 members in attendance. The secretariat explained the draft interim evaluation report and summary for the Second Basic Plan.
The interim evaluation was described as a way to assess the effects of measures and identify issues, using the evaluation indicators established by the Council as a reference, in order to understand progress over the full plan period and consider reflecting findings in measures as needed. The three evaluation points were the formulation of the First Plan (October 2020), the formulation of the Second Plan (March 2023), and the interim evaluation (April 2026).
The overall target is “an extension of healthy life expectancy by at least 3 years by 2040 and a reduction in the age-adjusted mortality rate from cardiovascular disease.” Healthy life expectancy was nearly flat from 2019 to 2022, and the 2025 figure is scheduled for publication in 2027. Mortality rates showed a downward trend for cerebrovascular and heart diseases among women and cerebrovascular disease among men. The rate for heart disease among men increased at the formulation of the Second Plan compared with the First Plan, then declined at the interim evaluation.
Impact
The chair said that the final report would be prepared based on comments on the draft. The draft states that issues and matters for consideration identified through the evaluation will continue to be examined, with the findings reflected in future measures, while work proceeds on formulating the Third Basic Plan.
Details
The draft report consists of Chapter 1, “Purpose of the Second Basic Plan for Promotion of Cardiovascular Disease Control”; Chapter 2, “Purpose of the Interim Evaluation”; Chapter 3, “Interim Evaluation”; and Chapter 4, “Conclusion.” It was explained that the report describes progress on individual measures, trends in related indicators, current and future initiatives, and matters requiring further promotion by the Council in coordination with relevant academic societies, organizations, and others.
Members discussed the clarity of the term “cardiovascular disease” and the bill title, as well as responses to changes in the ICD-11 classification. Member Nakayama cited awareness figures from the FY2024 survey: 43.4% for cardiovascular disease, 49.5% for cerebral infarction, and 47.7% for myocardial infarction. Members also proposed examining actual use of 12-lead electrocardiogram transmission during emergency transport and revising the wording to “admission and discharge support” by adding admission support to discharge support; the secretariat said it would consider these proposals.