The Tokyo government has been overwhelmed by interest in its new fertility subsidy program, one of several pilot programs across the nation designed to address one of the lowest birthrates in the world.
More than 7,000 women have registered for information sessions about the new program, which offers up to ￥300,000 (US$2,028) toward the costs of egg-freezing, and 1,800 women have applied since October last year, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government said.
The government estimated demand would be far lower. It budgeted ￥60 million for subsidies, enough to award the maximum amount to 200 women.
The program is open to all women aged 18 to 39, a departure from earlier fertility policies that excluded unmarried women. There is no deadline for the application and no pre-established limit to the number of subsidies that would be awarded. Tokyo Mayor Yuriko Koike told NHK the city plans to increase the budget significantly.
The Japanese government is increasingly concerned by its record-low birthrate, now at 1.3. A rate of 2.1 is considered optimal to keep a population stable. In 2022, the government agreed to reimburse 70 percent of the costs of in-vitro fertilization.
Egg freezing is one of several assisted reproductive technologies that can help extend a woman’s fertility, but it is expensive. In Japan, costs typically run from about ￥300,000 to ￥600,000, but can reach into the millions.
The technology is also far from a panacea. Only about 8.4 percent of people used their frozen eggs to give birth, a survey of 87 clinics and hospitals conducted by the Tokyo government in August showed.
The success rate of pregnancy using frozen eggs also drops with maternal age.
Still, keeping young eggs and increasing the odds of pregnancy is a vital option for women who are not ready to have children, said Noriko Taniyama, who works in the city government’s Bureau of Social Welfare, Children and Child-Rearing Support Division.
Tokyo plans to assess the effects of egg freezing on birthrate by accumulating data from subsidy recipients.
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