The Korean Medical Association Condemns Government's Ban on Retaking Medical Licensing Exam... "Will Respond with Strong Actions"

Rejection of the Legislative Council Proposal... "Avoiding Responsibility, No Sincerity"

A staff member of the Korea Health Personnel Licensing Examination Institute (KHPLEI) is managing the entrance.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] The Korean Medical Association (KMA) has criticized the government for not providing medical students with a chance to retake the national licensing exam and warned that it will respond with strong actions.

On the 29th, the KMA issued a statement saying, "We cannot accept the proposal for a government-medical council without resolving the medical licensing exam issue. To prevent the collapse of the healthcare system, we will unite the will of all medical sectors, including professors, residents, private practitioners, and employed doctors, and respond with strong actions."

KMA spokesperson Kim Dae-ha said, "I have doubts whether the Ministry of Health and Welfare initially had the will or even the ability to resolve this issue." He added, "Future responses will be discussed mainly through the expanded and reorganized Pan-Medical Sector Struggle Committee."

Earlier, Kang Do-tae, the 2nd Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, proposed forming a government-medical council first before the KMA demands a solution to the medical student issue from the government, during a luncheon meeting with reporters at a restaurant in Sejong City.

◇ Below is the full statement from the Korean Medical Association regarding the medical licensing exam

Last summer, there was a total strike by the entire medical sector opposing the government's unilateral policies such as establishing a public medical school and expanding medical school quotas. Consequently, on September 4, the government agreed with the KMA to suspend these policies, prepare support measures to protect healthcare workers and institutions in overcoming COVID-19, and resolve medical issues through a government-medical council.

This agreement acknowledged the problems in the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s process of unilaterally and coercively pushing policies without ever consulting the KMA. Therefore, it is also the government's rightful duty to rectify the damages endured by the medical sector while justly protesting and opposing the flawed policies.

Nevertheless, the issue of this year’s national exam eligibility for medical students, who have widely publicized the problems of the flawed policies by suspending their studies?the strongest form of expression from the students’ perspective?remains unresolved. This is due to the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s evasion of responsibility as the party responsible for the situation.

The Ministry initially questioned the students’ willingness to take the exam but changed its stance to demand an apology after the students declared their return. Recently, the Director of Health and Medical Policy even mentioned a promise to prevent recurrence of collective actions. Outwardly, they say the medical students should apologize, but in reality, they want an apology from the medical sector and the KMA.

The problem is that while the Ministry of Health and Welfare indulges in cowardly evasion of responsibility and a despicable hostage situation, an unprecedented shortage of about 2,700 newly licensed doctors is imminent. Only about 10% of the expected new doctors will be deployed to the field, causing chaos never before experienced.

Although the implementation of the Resident Act has somewhat alleviated the brutal workload, the average working hours of residents are still more than twice those of other professions. Thus, it is practically difficult to replace the residents’ absence. In this situation, if 90% of one year’s worth of doctors disappear, the shock will last for years, worsening the workload of surrounding medical staff, deteriorating training environments, and directly negatively impacting both the quantity and quality of medical services provided to patients.

What is even more concerning is that the essential medical fields, which have effectively received a "death sentence" amid increasing medical disputes, criminal penalties, government officials’ remarks about doctors as "public goods" during the strike, and concentrated orders to resume work and prosecutions during the strike period, will suffer another "fatal blow" due to this shortage. Since the workload is already heavy and difficult, once vacancies begin to appear, it is highly likely that applicants will continue to decline.

In other words, the medical students’ participation in the national exam is not for the students themselves but must be resolved to maintain the healthcare system and protect the public’s right to health. Nonetheless, the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s obsession with a pride battle with the medical sector without any countermeasures for the anticipated problems amounts to neglect of duty. What will the Ministry say when chaos erupts in March next year? Will it just keep repeating demands for apologies then?

The KMA has demanded that the Ministry take responsibility, but has concluded that further expectations are unrealistic. It is meaningless to continue dialogue with the irresponsible Ministry of Health and Welfare, which humiliates and breaks the spirit of its counterpart before policy negotiations and disregards the foreseeable chaos in the healthcare system. The proposal to start meetings first while postponing responsibility is also clearly unacceptable.

The Korean Medical Association declares that to prevent the anticipated chaos on the ground, the collapse of essential medical services, and the catastrophe of our healthcare system, it will unite the will of all medical sectors, including professors, residents, private practitioners, and employed doctors, and respond with strong actions.

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