'Tobacco Lawsuit' Goes to Second Trial... National Health Insurance Service Appeals First Trial Verdict

Kim Yong-ik, President of the National Health Insurance Service, is answering questions from reporters on the 20th in front of the Seoul Central District Court West Building in Seocho-gu, Seoul. On the same day, the National Health Insurance Service lost a lawsuit claiming smoking damages against tobacco companies including KT&G, Korea Philip Morris, and British American Tobacco (BAT) Korea. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] The National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) has filed an appeal after losing a lawsuit against domestic and international tobacco companies.

On the 10th, NHIS submitted an appeal to the court, contesting the first-instance ruling in the damages claim lawsuit filed against KT&G, Korea Philip Morris, and BAT Korea.

Previously, in 2014, NHIS filed a lawsuit demanding compensation totaling approximately 53.3 billion KRW from tobacco companies, claiming reimbursement for additional medical expenses incurred due to smoking. On the 20th of last month, the first-instance court dismissed NHIS's claim, stating that "the causal relationship between tobacco and diseases cannot exclude the possibility that the diseases were caused by other factors such as individual lifestyle habits, genetics, surrounding environment, and occupational characteristics beyond smoking."

NHIS explained, "Through consultations with legal representatives and expert advisory meetings, we identified issues with the first-instance ruling," adding, "After internal and external opinion gathering procedures, we decided to file an appeal."

The appeal trial will be held at the Seoul High Court, the higher court, but the presiding judge has not yet been assigned. NHIS plans to conduct a public bidding process soon to appoint legal representatives for the appeal trial.

Director Kim Yong-ik stated, "The NHIS's tobacco lawsuit was initiated to protect the health and lives of the public and is inevitably a matter that will proceed to the Supreme Court," adding, "In the appeal trial, we will prepare more thoroughly to achieve a ruling that healthcare experts as well as the general public can reasonably accept."

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