Medical gaps avoided... but legal revisions and budget securing remain minefields everywhere

Prime Minister Kim Bu-gyeom Visits Negotiation Site
Promises Active Implementation Efforts

Agreed on Nurse Deployment Standards by Severity,
Institutionalization of Medical Staff Support Funds,
and Expansion of Public Hospitals

Government Agreed to Actively Accept,
But Challenges Remain Beyond Party-Government Consultations

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] The dramatic resolution of negotiations between the Health and Medical Workers' Union and the government is attributed to the government's proactive will to resolve the situation. Until the final moments, both sides failed to narrow their differences on key issues, but the breakthrough came when the government showed a strong commitment to actively pursue legal amendments and secure the budget. It is also noted that Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum's direct visit to the negotiation table to meet with Na Soon-ja, the chairperson of the Health and Medical Workers' Union, positively influenced the agreement.

From the end of May until this day, both sides held 13 rounds of negotiations, forming a consensus on some issues such as expanding public healthcare. However, they could not significantly narrow their differences on detailed tasks related to expanding public healthcare and healthcare workforce and improving working conditions. On the 12th round of negotiations on the 30th of last month, which lasted 14 hours, tensions escalated as the two sides failed to reach an agreement due to differing positions on five core tasks. However, in the final negotiation held a day before the general strike, a dramatic agreement was reached, avoiding a medical vacuum amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Establishing Staffing Standards for COVID-19 Dedicated Hospitals and Expanding Public Hospitals

The five core tasks that the Health and Medical Workers' Union emphasized as key issues are: ▲ Establishing staffing standards for COVID-19 dedicated hospitals and institutionalizing the Life Safety Allowance system ▲ Expanding public hospitals in each of the 70 intermediate medical service areas nationwide ▲ Legislating the patient-to-nurse ratio ▲ Expanding the support system for education-dedicated nurses ▲ Expanding night nursing fees.

First, the Ministry of Health and Welfare will prepare staffing standards for nurses working according to the severity of COVID-19 cases by this month, referencing the staffing standards proposed by the Health and Medical Workers' Union, and will separately develop detailed implementation plans by next month. Additionally, to appropriately compensate the labor value of healthcare workers such as nurses caring for patients during infectious disease situations like COVID-19, the government plans to institutionalize the Infectious Disease Response Medical Personnel Support Fund (Life Safety Allowance) and implement it from January next year through legal amendments and budget allocation in the regular National Assembly session in the second half of the year. This funding will be fully supported by the national treasury.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare will designate and operate at least one responsible medical institution in each of the approximately 70 intermediate medical service areas by 2025 to expand public hospitals. To improve the treatment of nursing staff, the current nursing grade differentiation system will be upgraded to a 'patient-to-nurse actual ratio' standard. This reform plan will be implemented in 2023, but the specific implementation date will be finalized through the Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee (Geonjeongsim). Night nursing fees and night dedicated nurse management fees will be applied to all medical institutions, including tertiary general hospitals, starting January next year.

The union stated, "This agreement has laid an important foundation to prevent exhaustion and turnover of COVID-19 response personnel and to substantially expand and strengthen public healthcare," and evaluated that "it has established a groundbreaking turning point to overcome chronic staff shortages and poor working conditions and to achieve the expansion and improvement of healthcare personnel treatment."

Legal Amendments and Budget Securing Needed... Government to Proceed Through Party-Government Consultations

Although the general strike was withdrawn following the dramatic agreement on major issues, the underlying tensions have not been completely resolved. To institutionalize the Life Safety Allowance for healthcare personnel, which was a major issue, legal amendments and budget securing must be pursued in the second half of the year. For operating public hospitals in the 70 intermediate medical service areas, discussions with the relevant local governments and financial authorities are essential. Also, to reform the nursing grade differentiation system to the 'patient-to-nurse actual ratio,' discussions at the Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee are required.

Lee Chang-jun, Director of Health and Medical Policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said, "Some matters requiring legal amendments among the agreed items may be partially changed during the party-government consultation process," and added, "Regarding budget securing measures, there have been prior discussions with the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, and some additional matters have been added during the consultation process. We will take measures to ensure that the matters agreed upon through party-government consultations are implemented promptly."

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