Military clinic in Japan says staffing, not policy change, is limiting civilian care

Staffing shortages at a U.S. Navy clinic in southwestern Japan are limiting appointments for Defense Department civilians, raising concerns about access to ongoing medical care and prescriptions.

Branch Health Clinic Sasebo at Sasebo Naval Base continues to fill prescriptions from authorized U.S.-based providers and see civilians on a space-available bases, including for non-acute and recurring conditions, Defense Health Network Pacific Rim spokeswoman Regena Kowitz said by email Thursday.

However, graphics posted Aug. 27 on the clinic’s Facebook page described space-available care as limited to acute injuries and illnesses. They listed chronic disease management, routine physicals and long-term medication management as “not approved.”

The posts appeared to signal that “a blanket ban on routine and chronic care has been reinstated for space-available patients,” the Japan Civilian Medical Advocacy group said Thursday in a statement to Stars and Stripes.

The group said that would contradict a March 2023 Defense Health Agency memo allowing civilians to receive space-available treatment for chronic conditions.

Kowitz said no such policy change has occurred.

This graphic explaining space-available care at Branch Health Clinic Sasebo was posted on Aug. 27, 2026. (Branch Health Clinic Sasebo)

The Facebook post reflected the Sasebo clinic’s current capacity and was intended as a “local effort to be transparent,” she said.

Staffing shortages have reduced the number of space-available appointments, and the clinic cannot guarantee the recurring visits necessary to manage chronic conditions and medications, Kowitz added.

No space-available appointments have been advertised on the clinic’s Facebook page since Sept. 2, when two slots were available. Before that, two slots were advertised on Aug. 25.

The health network apologizes for “any confusion” caused by the posts and said future messages would be clearer and “reflect DHA guidance more precisely,” Kowitz said.

As of Friday, the clinic had neither removed the posts nor published a clarification on its Facebook page.

Concerns about prescription access had surfaced earlier. At least three members of the advocacy group’s Sasebo Civilian Medical Forum reported Aug. 19 that the clinic was no longer filling prescriptions for civilians.

Kowitz denied that the pharmacy had stopped doing so. Prescriptions from an “authorized U.S.-based provider” remain eligible to be filled, she said.

The clinic recommends that patients who need continuing medication management establish care with an off-base primary care provider, Kowitz added.

Clinic staff can help connect patients with local providers and offer temporary supplies of medication when necessary, she said.

The advocacy group said that option does not solve the problem for all patients because some medications prescribed by U.S. doctors are unavailable or difficult to obtain through Japan’s health care system.

“This makes reliable access to U.S. military pharmacies particularly important,” the group said. “Abruptly changing access to essential medications and chronic care without transparency or a transition plan puts Americans serving overseas at unnecessary risk and can have a broader impact on mission readiness.”

The group said military treatment facilities are “under-resourced and should be staffed with the goal of providing adequate care for our total workforce.”

Access to military health care for DOD civilians in Japan has been contentious since early 2023, when military facilities restricted many civilians to space-available appointments for acute conditions.

Thousands of civilian employees attended subsequent town halls across Japan to complain about difficulties obtaining care. DHA restored space-available treatment for chronic conditions that March.

The Pentagon in January 2025 launched a pilot program to help eligible civilian employees find Japanese medical providers and navigate payments after complaints about language barriers, large upfront bills and providers refusing care.