THE RITUAL OF RIGHTS IN JAPAN

This book began as a study of Japanese public policy, more specifically the legal, ethical, and political dimensions of health policy debates in Japan. Having studied medico-legal conflicts in the United States, and the tensions they generated between public health and individual rights, state power and personal privacy, medical paternalism and patients’ rights, I decided to examine how such concerns were addressed in Japan with regard to AIDS policy and the definition of death.Would HIV lead to policies of isolation? How would the Minis- try of Health and Welfare handle reporting requirements, access to treatment, and anonymous testing?Would hemophiliacs infected with HIV through the blood supply demand compensation? If so,...