| B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | AA | AB | AC | |
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1 | What is the nature of your submission? (please submit one form per topic) | Date of care request | Which base are you affiliated with? | What is the name(s) of the facility or facilities you attempted to receive care from? | Location (city and/or prefecture) of the facility you attempted to receive care from; | Please briefly describe the nature of your care request: | Date of response? | Please describe the reason you were denied care from this facility: | Are you planning to leave Japan as a result? If so, when? | If your denial of care was experienced at an on-base facility, please share what challenges you have faced or may face by attempting to receive care from local facilities: | ||||||||||||||
10 | Off-base denial | 9/28/2021 | Katsuki Obstetrics | Hiroshima | Denial of delivery with epidural | 9/28/21 | Japanese website listed epidural as an option, but not English. Was told they could not accommodate request. | <Response submitted prior to December 2022> | ||||||||||||||||
68 | On-base denial | 10/1/2021 | Camp Zama/Yokosuka | U.S. Naval Hospital Yokosuka/BG Crawford F. Sams Army Health Clinic | Zama/Yokosuka | Mammogram/colonoscopy | 10/1/21 | Stationed at Camp Zama and received a letter from Naval Hospital at Yokosuka that it was time for colonoscopy and mammogram. However, when I called they were unable to schedule the appointment without a referral and Camp Zama would not provide referrals due to not seeing civilians except for same day sick day appointments. I was forced to fly back to the states on my own dime June 2022 in order to have the procedures done. Colonoscopies are typically done without sedation in Japan. It is also difficult to find a facility that will do a mammogram without a referral. On base was unable to produce a referral for me for both on and off base facilities. This left me with few options except to fly home on my own. | <Response submitted prior to December 2022> | |||||||||||||||
75 | On-base denial | 10/1/2021 | Camp Zama/Yokosuka | U.S. Naval Hospital Yokosuka/BG Crawford F. Sams Army Health Clinic | Zama/Yokosuka | Mammogram/colonoscopy | 10/1/21 | I got a letter from Yokosuka Naval Hospital that it was time to schedule my mammogram and colonoscopy. I called and asked if I needed a referral. They said yes. I told them I could no longer see a doctor on Zama except for urgent care, no routine visits. Since I couldn't get a referral, I waited until I went home to Florida and had my tests. | <Response submitted prior to December 2022> | |||||||||||||||
76 | On-base denial | 6/1/2022 | MCAS Iwakuni | Branch Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | Therapy for postpartum depression and anxiety | 6/1/2022 | Mental health at Naval Family Branch Clinic Iwakuni is currently is unable to see anyone other than active duty. The usual go-to, the embedded mental health provider for medical home port was unavailable as I AM that provider. | It was admittedly a challenge being a mental health provider who was unable to have my own mental health addressed. The wait list off base is several months. | |||||||||||||||
86 | Off-base denial | 7/14/2022 | Yokosuka | All facilities on mainland Japan were contacted through Japan's international health line and through multiple providers who attempted to assist after USNH Yokosuka refused to provide continued follow up care | Mainland Japan | Neurological evaluation for severe head injury from work related injury here in Japan | 7/14/2022 | All facilities denied appointments, evaluation, and treatment. Patient's condition worsened to include loss of vision, hearing, cognitive function. | <Response submitted prior to December 2022> | |||||||||||||||
90 | On-base denial | 10/20/2022 | Unknown | Unknown | Unknown | Hormone therapy for menopause symptoms | 10/20/2022 | Desperately needing HRT due to mental health distress caused by peri-menopause. On base refused appt. said menopause is natural and everyone goes through it. | <Response submitted prior to December 2022> | |||||||||||||||
92 | On-base denial | 12/6/2022 | Sasebo | Branch Health Clinic Sasebo | Sasebo | Appt for newly developed cough, erectile dysfunction & vaccine request. | 12/6/2022 | Only one of 3 concerns was addressed. Persistent cough was addressed & OTC meds prescribed. Request for Shingles vaccine denied. Request for Viagra denied. Was told that receiving care for the cough was "doing me a solid". DOD (GS) civilian. | <Response submitted prior to December 2022> | |||||||||||||||
95 | On-base denial | 2/10/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Iwakuni Branch Health Clinic | Iwakuni | Space A appointment | 2/10/2023 | I called every morning all week at exactly 10am to claim a Space A appointment but either no one answered or they were fully booked. Today when no one answered again I tried to walk in and they told I have to call only, they can’t schedule appointments in person. Why is it so hard to get medical care here. | There is only one other main facility in Iwakuni that I know of and they charge extra to be seen without a referral and require a pre approved in person translator, no virtual translation assistance and no friends/family/personal hire that isn’t on their list. | |||||||||||||||
103 | On-base denial | 2/20/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Branch Health Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | Eye injury | 2/20/2023 | Guessing the date but my son sprayed his eyes with a Japanese spider spray and of course was crying and rubbing his eyes and miserable. I took him to the clinic or “ER” if it is that. They turned my son away, telling us to make an appointment with an optometrist... which didn't have an appointment available for a whole month. | ||||||||||||||||
127 | On-base denial | 12/10/2022 | Sasebo | Branch Health Clinic Sasebo | Sasebo | I requested an ultrasound to see if my baby was okay, they denied me for over two weeks. I would call multiple times a day hoping to get a better phone operator and ask to be seen by a doctor and they denied me. I finally was able to get an appointment and I asked for someone other than the OB nurse to assist me and explain things to me because I had questions that she couldn’t answer and she told me all I can do is speak to the OOTD, never gave me a provider and they told me they don’t do that there. After being denied care numerous times after expressing something was wrong I had a miscarriage. I then got pregnant again the same month ( maybe it was a twin pregnancy) but I told them I just lost one this time I would prefer better care because I don’t want to lose this one, I should’ve been considered high risk; in the states I would’ve been, I called asked for a early ultrasound to confirm pregnancy & they said they only confirm by urine test. So I took the test weeks past & I asked for them to give me a ultrasound I was 13 weeks they start ultrasounds at 10-11weeks & they told me I needed to confirm I’m pregnant with another pregnancy test and basically denied me any other care because they weren’t capable of checking to see if there was a baby growing in me or not. So I left japan due to lack of medical help but before that I had a second miscarriage, I was almost 20 weeks and still had not been seen by a physician or had an ultrasound | 2/20/2023 | “They lacked the equipment and personnel to accommodate me” it was only after I filed a complaint and reached out to patient advocates that they attempted to help me but by then I lost two pregnancies. I would never recommend that clinic | ||||||||||||||||
137 | On-base denial | 2/22/2023 | Sasebo | Branch Health Clinic Sasebo | Sasebo City, Nagasaki Preference | Prescription refill | 2/22/2023 | Doctor would not write one year worth of refill for two maintenance prescriptions for chronic conditions, as I had requested. I reiterated to the Doctor that I am Space-A and therefore concerned about being denied prescriptive services at the base clinic, that I was asking for a year's worth of refills because the ability to access base clinic physicians for chronic concerns is uncertain, at best, and likely no longer an option for individuals categorized as Space-A. The Doctor assured me that even though I am Space-A, I could call and request refills without being seen in person in three months, when I run out of medicine. | Unsure, waiting for definitive answers from DHA, Congress & the "working groups". | |||||||||||||||
156 | On-base denial | 2/24/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Iwakuni Branch Health Clinic | Iwakuni | Urgent Care for vomiting, fever, shaking, headaches, weakness. | 2/24/2023 | My daughter, 22 years old, called me on Friday Feb 24th asking me to take her to Urgent Care. She was puking, had fever, was shaking, was weak, had headaches. Urgent care told us to call the Nurse Advisory Line. She did and stayed on the phone with them for 50 minutes plus. They said yes, go to the nearest urgent care. She asked does that include on-base at family branch clinic urgent care, and they said yes. We ring the bell again, a corpsman came out and told us to wait outside (in the cold). He went inside two or three times asking questions about symptoms and came back saying the doctor said to go back home and don’t eat solid foods and just wait for it to go away. The doctor didn’t even bother to came out to check on her, vitals, take her name, nothing at all. I am disappointed and mad at the whole situation. He told me there is nothing they can do, she needs to find something off base or wait and see. Knowing the language barriers and late at night (around 10 pm), my daughter asked me to take her home with me. She felt tired, defeated, demoralized, so I did and bought medicine over the counter. Finally I did reach out to a translator so she can be seen this week because she is still tired and coughing. We work for the government providing services for the military and their families, but apparently the government does not care about us. Everyone knows that the family branch clinic in Iwakuni is incapable to treat emergencies, they refer all of them to ICC a main hospital off base. However, ICC cannot see Americans if we don’t have a Referal from the clinic off base. If we cant get in the clinic, we cant get a referral, we cant get seen by anyone. This system is broken and civilian still don’t see solutions. The branch clinic don’t provide urgent care, only emergencies and they'd just transfer to ICC in an emergency, according to the corpsman and the doctor on duty (Feb 24, 2023). | No yet | Translation services at any given time | ||||||||||||||
158 | On-base denial | 3/12/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Iwakuni Branch Health Clinic | Iwakuni | Space A appointment | 3/12/2023 | No appointments available, despite several being listed on Facebook and my calling at 10:01 only one minute past opening time for Space A calls | Unsure | There is only one local facility in Iwakuni, and they limit our care. The idea of being denied by the only place during an emergency is truly disturbing. | ||||||||||||||
165 | On-base denial | 2/22/2023 | Sasebo | Branch Health Clinic Sasebo | Sasebo | Prescription refill | 3/22/2023 | Understanding the access to prescription medication had changed for Space-A individuals, I requested a year's worth of refills for two daily maintenance medications, to ensure no gap in coverage while I navigated the online prescription system/service or established care with a stateside provider who would write prescriptions without seeing me in person. The provider I saw would not write refills for a year's worth of refills for my two daily maintenance medications. Instead, I was given a 90-day supply and told that I could simply call the pharmacy line when I needed a refill, I didn't even need to be seen at the clinic. I reiterated my Space-A status and my concern that what the provider was assuring me was contrary to DHA policy. Provider again told me I could call the clinic pharmacy for a refill in 90 days and ended the appointment. | Uncertain | |||||||||||||||
166 | On-base denial | 3/23/2023 | Kadena | Kadena Medical Group | Kadena, Okinawa | Prescription Renewal | 3/23/2023 | I called the appointment line to make an appt or walk in or phone consult to get my birth control prescription renewed. The appointment line representative said Kadena hadn’t updated their rules and couldn’t see contractors despite the new memo that says we can get prescriptions and Space A appointments again. He said try a different base. | Not at the moment. But it’s a possibility. | |||||||||||||||
173 | On-base denial | 3/26/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Iwakuni Branch Health Clinic | Iwakuni | Space A appointment | 3/26/2023 | I have been calling for months at 10am for a space a appointment and no one has ever answered the phone. | ||||||||||||||||
175 | On-base denial | 4/7/2023 | Sasebo | Branch Health Clinic Sasebo | Sasebo | Well-child visit | 4/7/2023 | Followed the procedure to request an appointment for my child’s 4 month well visit check up. However, when trying to schedule the appointment, I was told the doctor on duty does not perform well-child visits and I will need to call again next week. | There are no doctors off base who will see my child for routine care/check ups. | |||||||||||||||
177 | Off-base denial | 4/14/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | All local facilities | Iwakuni | Urgent MRI with referral from base | 4/14/2023 | My husband was referred for an urgent MRI. The translator has not been able to find a facility that can do this. She sent us an email indicating that the hospitals that used to take patients from the base "don't take patients anymore for some reason". How is this possible. | ||||||||||||||||
178 | On-base denial | 6/9/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Branch Health Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | Resuming ADHD medication | 5/9/2023 | I recently tried to get a new prescription for ADHD medication (I used to take it before having children) and was denied. They told me that they are not prescribing any new ADHD medications for the foreseeable future due to medication shortage. | It is nearly impossible to get ADHD medication from a Japanese provider in our area. They need special licensing and telehealth cannot prescribe it. | |||||||||||||||
180 | On-base denial | 7/3/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Branch Health Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | Labor and Delivery | 7/3/2023 | I have been given no reason for the denial, just told I need to go back to the united states out of my own pocket to give birth. I am currently 32 weeks pregnant with a bmi over 40 and Japanese facilities won’t take me as a result. | My bmi is over 40 and Japanese facilities won’t take me, plus it’s already so late in my pregnancy. | |||||||||||||||
183 | Misdiagnosis and/or Safety event | 6/22/2020 | Sasebo | Branch Health Clinic Sasebo | Sasebo | Routine care | 8/10/2023 | we were on Sasebo for 6 years. We moved to CA this fall and have been getting check ups to figure out all medical issues that perplexed Sasebo. My son's dentist instantly recognized he needed 3 root canals for an injury from 2020. He kept getting infections that they couldn't figure out. | ||||||||||||||||
214 | On-base denial | 9/12/2023 | Sasebo | Branch Health Clinic Sasebo | Sasebo | ADHD medicine | 9/12/2023 | We were seen on Sasebo last week and they denied us and said that due to an ADHD med shortage, clinics around Japan are no longer prescribing any new referrals for any ADHD medications, especially to those who didn't receive an overseas screening (all civilians). I called other bases to see if we could fly to Okinawa to get this prescription and they said the same thing. | ||||||||||||||||
218 | On-base denial | 10/5/2023 | Ikego | U.S. Naval Hospital | Ikego | Chest pain concerning for heart attack | 10/5/2023 | I am a civilian teacher on Ikego base in Zushi, Japan. At about 6:30 PM I began having severe chest pains. I am 64 years old and in excellent health, but I thought I was having a heart attack. My husband started driving me to Yokosuka Naval Hospital, but the pain was so bad that we decided to go to the fire station at Ikego base so that I could get immediate medical attention if I needed it. When we got there, the firefighters all came out to the car, but none of them did anything for me. They called the corpsman who was on duty on Ikego that evening and she got there in about 5-10 minutes. She took my vitals and asked me some questions. (She was very kind and supportive.) She called the doctor on call at the USH. I don't know what all the doctor told her, but he did tell her not to have them bring me to USH because there was no one there that could help me. So they called a Host Nation ambulance, which arrived in about 5-10 minutes. Once the ambulance arrived, they got me in it and then we sat in the driveway of the fire station for 15 minutes while they figured out which hospital they could take me to. Finally, they took me to Yokohama Kyosai Hospital, where they took very good care of me. In all, from the time we arrived at the Ikego Fire Station until the ambulance left to take me to the hospital, 45 minutes passed. It turns out I was not having a heart attack, but If I was I think I would’ve died on the driveway. | ||||||||||||||||
256 | On-base denial | 10/9/2023 | Ikego | Ikego | Ikego | Physical Therapy | 10/9/2023 | Took me 3 weeks to get a referral to PT, then it took a scathing ICE comment and another 30 days to get 1 appointment, they have no other appointments through December so I won't be seen again for my problem anytime soon. Meanwhile there’s a sign at the front desk saying the no-show numbers for September 2023 that says there were 73 no-show appointments for physical therapy and 6 no-shows for occupational therapy appointments. | ||||||||||||||||
315 | Misdiagnosis and/or Safety event | 10/12/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Branch Health Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | Fractured foot | 10/12/2023 | I fractured my foot on Thursday night while in Tokyo. We got back Friday night so I called the clinic and they told me to call the nurses line. So I called the nurses line and the nurse told me that I needed to be seen within 8 hours. About 15/20 minutes after I got off the phone the clinic called me back and the doc that was working told me not to come in because there was nothing they could do since the X-ray tech was already gone home for the weekend. He is supposed to be on call, but the doc then told me not to worry about it because he had broken his foot in the past and from experience it didn't *sound* like my foot was broken. He then told me to just come in Monday at 8 to get X-rays and my actual appointment to get my foot looked at wasn't until sometime after noon. | ||||||||||||||||
323 | Misdiagnosis and/or Safety event | 10/16/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Branch Health Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | Ear pain | 10/16/2023 | I took my son to the doctor because he had crusted eyes, runny nose, and was hitting his ear. The doctor asked out of the three, what would we want fixed... the. said he looked fine and sent us home. Took him back to a different doctor two days later and he has a double ear infection. | ||||||||||||||||
337 | On-base denial | 10/27/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Branch Health Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | Space A appointment | 10/27/2023 | Started calling Space-A at 10, have tried every few minutes since and I'm still getting the automated message saying they're not open or have filled all the 27 available appointments for today. Do they even turn on the phone? Are there even available appointments? It’s been like this all week. | ||||||||||||||||
338 | Misdiagnosis and/or Safety event | 10/28/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Japanese dentist off base | Iwakuni | Routine dental care | 10/28/2023 | I see a Japanese dentist every 6 months and they keep saying teeth are great. I went to an American dentist during a visit home and had two really bad cavities and a cracked tooth that had to get a crown. Same thing with my kid. | ||||||||||||||||
339 | Off-base denial | 11/2/2023 | MCAS Iwakuni | Iwakuni Hospital | Iwakuni | denied appointment due to lack of translator | 11/2/2023 | It's quite literally impossible to get adequate medical care off-base here in Japan without a quality medical interpreter. And with these interpreters comes associated costs that, based on my experience, is NOT reimbursed by any of the FEHB Medical Insurers. | ||||||||||||||||
357 | On-base denial | 4/2/2024 | Iwakuni | Branch Health Clinic Iwakuni | Iwakuni | General appointment | 4/2/2024 | No one answering the phones and no appointments available. I called 12 times at 10am to claim a Space A appointment with no answer. Walked to the clinic and they said oh no one is manning the phone because we can’t fill the vacancy. | ||||||||||||||||
381 | On-base denial | 1/8/2023 | Iwakuni | Iwakuni Birthing Center | Got a referral for MRI for foot drop but could not get a Space A appt for 9 weeks of calling ever day, asked for except to policy since I was fearful of permanent nerve damage | 4/4/2023 | I was a civilian worker (teacher) and could not get an appt and once I finally did, they still did not refer me to anyone for further case and I had to depart Japan (disability retirement) as my only way to get healthcare. I did not get healthcare in time and now I still can't feel my foot 2 years later, even after several injections and 2 years of PT. I am devastated that the delays in getting healthcare has cause me to have a permanent disability. | Iwakuni did not refer me to specialists on base that could have helped me because of the FUBAR in implementing the DHA healthcare restrictions. | ||||||||||||||||
382 | 3/8/2025 | Yokota | 374 med group | I declined inductions and was harassed by medical staff | 3/8/2025 | I did not want to receive induction. I wanted to have a physiological birth. I was also misdiagnosed as having mental health issues affecting delivery. I went for a vaginal exam earlier in pregnancy out of concern and was denied. | The doctors have said that I caused too many issues and should be forced to deliver CONUS if I get pregnant again. I did not accept their medical advice and I faced retaliation. I spoke to a staff member outside of duty hours who went to my doctor and discussed what I had told them. The medical staff did not check my uterine tone following delivery. I hemorrhaged but did not find out until my husband told me I looked pale and we informed staff. They came in and confirmed I hemorrhaged. | |||||||||||||||||
383 | On-base denial | 12/10/2024 | Yokota | 374 med group | My daughter had watery diarrhea | 12/10/2024 | They denied me because they just said toddler diarrhea is normal and that I had used the urgent care too many times. My daughter had watery diarrhea for over a week. She ended up being diagnosed with a UTI at a later time. They did not take my concerns seriously. | |||||||||||||||||
384 | Misdiagnosis and/or Safety event | 8/5/2019 | MCAS Iwakuni, Japan | Okinawa Naval Hospital | I needed intensive care post delivery of my twins. | 8/10/2019 | I wasn’t denied care but I was consistently rejected care when I explained my symptoms I was suffering from post delivery and almost died as a result. | I suffered from getting Postpardum Pre-Eclampsia with a complication of Pulmonary Edema and Cardiomyopathy… as a result of the facility ignoring my symptoms and denying when I complained, I never received proper care until 1 week post birth of my twins. I was almost Medivaced to Hawaii because my heart was swollen and not operating properly by then. I was so close to death and told the maternity ward every day of my symptoms and concerns and troubles breathing and they continuously told me it was me panicking and because I had a C-Section I was in pain and just “freaking” out. Because of this, I will no longer have children because I fear I will be on the verge of death again and my heart may always have a permanent problem with having a brief instance of heart failure. | ||||||||||||||||
385 | Misdiagnosis and/or Safety event | 8/13/2023 | Yokota | 374th Medical Group | I was not denied care, but this hospital did not have the proper medication on hand which resulted in a major surgery. | 8/13/2024 | On 13 August 2023 I was around 5 weeks pregnant (conceived through fertility treatment), and was experiencing excruciating stomach pain. I went to the urgent care on-base and was initially told to go home and come back if the pain got worse. I chose to stay and fight to be evaluated, in which another doctor was unable to determine the cause. Once sent back for imaging, it was determined that I was experiencing an ectopic pregnancy which COULD have been treated with medication.. but the hospital did not have this on hand. I was taken into surgery and had my fallopian tube removed. Currently, I am experiencing a harder time conceiving and the fertility specialist says my only option moving forward is IVF. Additionally, the base does not offer fertility services so I must take time from my full-time job and commute over an hour to be seen by a fertility specialist. | The on-base hospital does not offer fertility treatment, so I must take time off work and commute over an hour just to be seen by a specialist. | ||||||||||||||||
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