Tuberculosis Control Law of Japan: current issues and prospects of tuberculosis control plan

Prevention and control measures against tuberculosis still remain a contemporary issue in Japan. In April 2005, the Tuberculosis Control Law was revised, which has newly been with particular emphasis on medical screening. However, the present law has been indicated to have issues in the fields of such as public health, human rights, and legislation. Although the Tuberculosis Control Law will be integrated into the Infectious Diseases Law on the basis of those issues, the aim of the integration of these laws are mainly for the establishment of pathogen control system to prevent biological terrorism and the accidental spread of infectious diseases and for the comprehensive control of infectious diseases based on the latest medical knowledge. In March 2006, the draft for the revised the Infectious Diseases Law was approved by the Cabinet of government. The combination of the two laws is expected to improve the program quality for the control of tuberculosis and infectious diseases but some issues remains to be resolved. This paper will review the combination of the Tuberculosis Control Law and the Infectious Diseases Law in light of what has been done, what will be intended, and what will change after the combination.