FKI: "While China and Japan Rush Ahead with Telemedicine, Korea Has Yet to Start"

[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] Claims have emerged that China and Japan saw positive effects by utilizing telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic. In contrast, South Korea has been unable to properly utilize telemedicine due to regulations, leading to concerns that it is being left out of the rapidly growing global telemedicine market.

The Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) released a report on the 22nd titled "Current Status and Implications of Telemedicine in China and Japan," stating that China and Japan effectively used telemedicine in response to COVID-19, helping prevent infections among medical staff and improving treatment efficiency.

On the other hand, South Korea has basically banned doctor-patient telemedicine, and although telemedicine was temporarily allowed during the COVID-19 crisis, it was not properly utilized, the report analyzed.

The FKI argued that to enhance response capabilities for future infectious disease outbreaks and to seize opportunities in the globally growing telemedicine market, telemedicine regulations must be significantly relaxed.

◆China and Japan actively utilized telemedicine in response to COVID-19, while South Korea has barely taken its first steps= In responding to the COVID-19 crisis, China and Japan actively utilized telemedicine. In China, 11 companies including Alipay and Baidu participated in establishing the "New Coronavirus Online Doctor Consultation Platform."

Among these, Ping An Good Doctor, the platform with the largest user base, saw its membership increase tenfold compared to before COVID-19, with a total of 1.11 billion users. Additionally, as confirmed cases surged outside China in regions such as Europe and the United States, Alibaba Health provided free medical services to Chinese residents overseas.

In Japan, telemedicine was conducted for passengers of the Diamond Princess cruise ship through the "COVID-19 Response Support Center" app. Specifically, services such as medical consultations and requests for necessary medications were provided. Moreover, the Japanese government established a teleconsultation window with doctors for the entire population.

According to the FKI, China and Japan have fully allowed doctor-patient telemedicine since 2014. In particular, China is encouraging telemedicine through government policies to address medical infrastructure imbalances and shortages of medical personnel.

Since fully permitting doctor-patient telemedicine in 2014, smart healthcare through online hospitals has been actively progressing. Currently, 10% of medical consultations are conducted remotely, and by 2025, it is expected that one in four medical consultations will be conducted remotely.

Japan has gradually relaxed telemedicine regulations over 20 years. Starting in 1997 by allowing doctor-patient telemedicine for specific diseases and regions, it removed restrictions on telemedicine targets in 2015. Since 2018, telemedicine has been included in health insurance, and the growth of Japan’s telemedicine market is expected to accelerate.

In contrast, doctor-patient telemedicine in South Korea is explicitly regulated, and amendments to the Medical Service Act allowing telemedicine have been pending in the National Assembly for 10 years. To prevent the spread of COVID-19, the government temporarily allowed telephone consultations and prescriptions related to COVID-19, but the Korean Medical Association completely rejected this. They argued that implementing telemedicine without a properly established system would rather increase confusion.

As of 2019, the global telemedicine market was valued at $30.5 billion, with China estimated at $3.9 billion and Japan at $200 million. While the global telemedicine market is rapidly growing with an average annual growth rate of 14.7%, South Korea has been unable to even accurately assess the size of its telemedicine market due to regulations.

Meanwhile, since telemedicine is not possible domestically, Korean companies possessing related technologies are conducting business overseas. Even companies with outstanding technological capabilities that have signed contracts with foreign governments to provide telemedicine services face limited opportunities to enter the domestic market due to regulations that do not align with global trends.

Kim Bongman, Director of International Cooperation at the FKI, said, "To seize opportunities in the growing telemedicine market and enhance response capabilities during crises like COVID-19, it is necessary to relax telemedicine regulations. Taking this crisis as an opportunity, we must boldly improve restrictions on doctor-patient telemedicine and prepare conditions to respond to future emerging infectious diseases and to secure a leading position in related markets."

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