Medical expenses in FY'98 hit record high, report says.

Medical expenses in FY'98 hit record high, report says Yomiuri Medical expenses in fiscal 1998 hit a record high 29.83 trillion yen, an increase of 2.6 percent from the previous year, according to a report on national medical fees released by the Health and Welfare Ministry on Thursday. However, the rate of growth is the second lowest--the lowest being recorded in fiscal 1997--due to 1998's revised remuneration system for medical treatment that lowered the costs of medicines, according to the report. Medical expenses--payments made for medical treatment for sickness and injuries--do not include fees for normal childbirth, purchases of drugs at drugstores or meals for seniors at …