"Review Needed on Adjusting Support if Foreigners' Medical Expenses Become a Domestic Quarantine Burden"

Yoon Tae-ho, Head of the Quarantine Task Force, briefing on the novel coronavirus infection. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Min Jun-young] As confirmed cases of foreign nationals entering the country with the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) continue to occur, the government has announced that it will consider adjusting support for their medical expenses if it becomes a burden on domestic quarantine efforts.

On the 21st, Yoon Tae-ho, head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) Quarantine General Team at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said at a COVID-19 briefing, "Support should continue as long as it does not burden the domestic medical quarantine system, but if it becomes a burden, review is necessary," adding, "Currently, it is the principle that the state bears the cost, so we are considering legal amendments and think changes are needed for specific cases."

The government had previously covered diagnostic test fees, treatment costs, and quarantine expenses for foreign entrants.

However, as confirmed cases increased, only test and treatment costs are now supported, excluding quarantine expenses. The World Health Organization (WHO) also recommends supporting treatment costs for foreigners to prevent the spread of COVID-19, so countries worldwide, including South Korea, provide test and treatment costs for both foreigners and nationals in cases of infectious diseases.

Son Young-rae, head of the Strategic Planning Team, said, "The number of foreign confirmed cases who received treatment is not large, and the treatment costs are relatively low," adding, "If discriminatory measures are taken, patients might hide their condition, so we have maintained the principle of applying the same standards to both foreigners and nationals without discrimination."

Son also stated, "Seasonal workers are not from affluent groups, so when considering other options, we need to look at potential side effects," and added, "If discriminatory measures are taken only against foreigners, we will comprehensively review diplomatic benefits and international reputation."

The government announced that it will consider entry restrictions if PCR (polymerase chain reaction) negative certificates issued by countries subject to strengthened quarantine measures are found to be forged.

Yoon said, "We have a system to notify through overseas diplomatic missions if there are fake negative certificates or reliability issues with test results, so immediate action is taken through the missions," adding, "If serious problems occur, entry restrictions will be considered, but for now, we plan to clarify the facts and monitor the trend while taking additional measures."

To minimize imported infections, the government requires entrants from six countries subject to strengthened quarantine to present a negative certificate issued within 48 hours of departure.

However, as confirmed cases have emerged three times after submitting negative certificates, there are calls for measures against 'fake certificates.'

Regarding this, Son explained, "The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency only recognizes negative certificates issued by medical institutions deemed reliable in the respective countries," adding, "I understand all three recent cases involved Kazakhstani nationals."

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