People are at risk of asbestos exposure at 341 hospitals and 92 nurseries across Japan, according to an interim report on a health ministry survey released earlier this week.
The Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry downplayed the seriousness of the finding, saying that in some of the cases, facilities were deemed risky because they had asbestos in places patients and children normally do not enter, such as boiler and machine rooms.
The ministry requested that all facilities take measures to prevent asbestos contamination, officials said, without naming the facilities.