— Latest update: February 2023 —

Japan has the third-largest pharmaceutical market in the world although the changing demographics are creating a challenging business landscape. Because of Japan’s aging population and the falling birthrate and the resulting financial difficulties for Japan’s medical system, the Japanese government has taken various measures to cut healthcare spending, which in turn has led to very complex reimbursement and pricing rules. However, the pharmaceutical sector offers substantial opportunities for growth given Japan's ageing population is likely to increase demand for pharmaceuticals from EU countries.

The recent outbreak of the Coronavirus also had a substantial impact on the current status of the market size due to the increased demand for prescriptions, drugs and vaccines. Now that the situation has almost revered back to normal and companies are resuming their original activities, the pharmaceutical market is still expected to grow.

JETRO, Life Sciences: Attractive Sectors, 2020
Mordor Intelligence, Japan pharmaceutical market - growth, trends, covid-19 impact, and forecasts (2023 - 2028), 2022

Table of contents

• Overview
  • Digitalisation
  • Generic Drugs
• Regulations
• Drug Pricing
  • Price Calculation for new drugs
  • Price Maintenance Premium
  • Market expansion repricing
• Expert Reports
• Annual Reports
• Further Reading
• External Organisations and Trade Fairs