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On March 27, 2018, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the presentation ceremony of the Healthy Society Award held in Tokyo.
 
The Prime Minister said in his address,
 
“On this occasion, I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to the recipients of the 14th Healthy Society Award.
 
The Healthy Society Award honors individuals who have worked to serve others in the healthcare and medical fields in Japan and abroad. This award has contributed greatly to building a healthy society, and to improving the quality of life of our citizens.
 
The four individuals who received the award today have worked with great commitment across a wide variety of areas. Their activities include enhancing medical education programs, improving medical standards in developing countries that lack medical resources, saving the precious lives of infants, and introducing a pioneering and humorous initiative to eradicate the negative perceptions of dementia.
 
The recognition of your efforts through this award is a major source of encouragement for all the people who are involved in various health-related activities in all parts of Japan.  
 
To overcome the problem of a declining birthrate and an ageing society, I am calling for a shift towards a social security system oriented to all generations, which can bring peace of mind and security to both the young and the elderly.
 
As we approach 2025, when all the baby-boomers will have reached the age of 75, the environment surrounding health and medical care in our country is facing a major turning point, including the epidemiological transition and transformation of local communities.
 
Under such circumstances, it is our responsibility, as individuals who are living in the present era, to put in place reforms and create a society where everyone, including children, the elderly, people with disabilities, and those suffering from intractable diseases, can live healthily and comfortably.  
 
Our aim is to create a society where everyone can enjoy good health and long lives as they wish.
 
To that end, we will strive to establish a system that is able to seamlessly provide the necessary medical and nursing care services, in cooperation with the many people who are working hard in various related fields. 
 
We are joined here today by many people who are my seniors in life. I hope that your continued vitality and activity will contribute significantly to Japan’s development, to the field of medical care in Japan, and to the creation of a healthy society.
 
Chairman Yamazaki of the Japan Psychiatric Hospitals Association, who is now taking photos with his smartphone, often plays golf with me. Despite having reached the age where people usually stop improving in their golfing skills, he has actually become even better. I would therefore like to suggest that the spirit of never giving up helps people to stay young.
 
In closing, I would like to express my respect to everyone who has supported this award. I look forward to the further development of the Healthy Society Award, and hope that all the award recipients will enjoy even greater success. Finally, I would like to wish you all good health. Congratulations once again to all the recipients of the award.”