Response from Director Jeong Eun-kyung to the question, "What if you are proposed as the next Minister of Health and Welfare?"

Jung Eun-kyung, Director of the Central Disease Control Headquarters (Director of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency), is attending the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on COVID-19 response, chaired by Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, at the Government Complex Sejong in Sejong City on the morning of the 16th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] Amid discussions of a possible cabinet reshuffle within the ruling party, government, and Blue House following the general election, rumors are rife regarding the appointment of the next Minister of Health and Welfare, who is currently leading efforts to manage the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis. Jeong Eun-kyung, Director of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), which serves as the control tower for quarantine measures, firmly stated in response to questions about her potential candidacy as the next minister, "I will focus on quarantine efforts."

At a regular briefing on the 17th, when asked, "What is your opinion if you were offered the position of the next Minister of Health and Welfare?" Director Jeong said, "I believe this is a time when we must do our utmost to overcome COVID-19 and minimize its damage."

Director Jeong began her public service career at the National Institute of Health, the predecessor of the KDCA, and has worked in key internal departments and major divisions of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The KDCA is an agency under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and its director holds a vice-ministerial rank. It was elevated in status after the 2015 Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak to enhance infectious disease crisis response capabilities. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, Director Jeong has been leading comprehensive quarantine measures, and her calm and professional handling has received praise both domestically and internationally.

Current Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo was appointed shortly after the current administration took office. Considering that since the Kim Young-sam administration, which explicitly included 'welfare' in the ministry's name, ministers rarely served more than two years, his tenure has been relatively long. The Ministry of Health and Welfare has often been mentioned during cabinet reshuffles, but given the ongoing efforts to manage the COVID-19 crisis, it is expected that changing the 'head' will not be easy at this time.

Regarding the ruling party's and opposition parties' pledge to elevate the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency to an independent agency (청, Cheong), Director Jeong remained reserved. Both the Democratic Party of Korea and the United Future Party, among other opposition parties, have pledged to strengthen infectious disease response capabilities by upgrading the KDCA to an independent agency separate from the Ministry of Health and Welfare and expanding its organization, including regional branches.

When asked for her opinion on this pledge, Director Jeong said, "Government organizational restructuring requires legal amendments and must be reviewed jointly by the government and the National Assembly. It is not appropriate for me to express a personal opinion."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.