[Report] "Remove ICU Beds? This Is Attempted Murder" High School Student YouTuber Accuses Moon

President Moon, Prime Minister Kim Bu-gyeom, and Director Jeong Eun-kyeong Reported to Prosecution
"Administrative Order Without Medical Consideration... Allowed Patient Deaths"
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ICU Occupancy Rate Reaches 78.9% as of 5 PM on the 26th

On the 27th, high school YouTuber Yang Daerim visited the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office to file a complaint with the prosecution, accusing President Moon Jae-in and other quarantine officials of murder and attempted murder by implied intent. Photo by Park Hyun-joo phj0325@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] A high school student YouTuber has filed a complaint with the prosecution accusing President Moon Jae-in, Director Jung Eun-kyung of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, and other quarantine officials of murder and attempted murder by implied intent. This is in response to the government's administrative order to transfer 210 severe COVID-19 patients to general wards for treatment after "20 days from symptom onset."

On the 27th at 2 p.m., Yang Dae-rim, a third-year high school student who runs the YouTube channel "Yang Dae-rim Research Institute," visited the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office and filed a complaint against President Moon Jae-in, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum, Minister of Health and Welfare Kwon Deok-cheol, and Director Jung Eun-kyung of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on charges of murder and attempted murder by implied intent.

The reason for the complaint is that on the 20th, the government issued an administrative order to 42 medical institutions to transfer 210 long-term hospitalized severe COVID-19 patients from isolation beds to general beds, endangering their lives.

Standing in front of the prosecution office that day, Yang said, "The accused issued an administrative order to transfer 210 severe COVID-19 patients, who were maintaining their lives through intensive treatment and care in intensive care units based on medical staff's judgment, from the ICU to general wards, thereby stopping the intensive treatment and care in the ICU."

Yang continued, "Among the 210 patients ordered to leave the COVID-19 ICU, 22 died. The accused should bear criminal responsibility for murder by implied intent for the 22 deceased patients and attempted murder by implied intent for the remaining 188 patients who did not die," he claimed.

He added, "According to Supreme Court precedents, in murder cases, intent is recognized not only when there is a clear intention to kill but also when there is an internal will to tolerate the result of death, thus recognizing implied intent."

In this regard, criticism has also come from opposition parties. On the 25th, Won Il-hee, spokesperson for the People Power Party's Central Election Countermeasures Committee, released a statement saying, "It is common sense that the decision to move patients to different wards should be made by medical staff based on the patient's condition, but this was ignored," adding, "This is the height of desk administration and could be considered murder by implied intent."

The medical community also opposed the administrative order. On the 20th, the Korean Society of Critical Care Medicine issued a statement titled "Statement on the Shortage of COVID-19 and Non-COVID-19 ICU Beds and Medical System," expressing concerns that "patients worsening to critical condition in hospitals, patients requiring intensive care after emergency surgery, and critically ill patients visiting emergency rooms among various non-COVID-19 critical patients may have their rights to appropriate treatment restricted or infringed."

They further criticized, "Assigning the severely limited non-COVID-19 ICU beds preferentially to COVID-19 patients being released from isolation involves ethical decisions and communication issues with patients and guardians, which are being shifted onto frontline medical staff dedicated to critical care, imposing additional burdens."

On the 16th, medical staff are caring for a patient in the intensive care unit of Pakae Hospital, a COVID-19 dedicated hospital in Pyeongtaek-si, Gyeonggi Province. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

In response, quarantine authorities rebutted. On the morning of the 24th, Lee Ki-il, the first controller of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, said at a briefing, "This is about releasing patients from isolation and transitioning them to general treatment after 20 days from symptom onset; it is by no means stopping treatment."

He added, "After 20 days, patients no longer have infectiousness, so to utilize high-level medical resources required for isolation treatment efficiently, patients are transferred to general ICUs or wards, or discharged. If medical staff still judge that isolation treatment is necessary, the isolation period can be extended," he explained.

As criticism continued, the government reiterated through a back briefing that the administrative order does not mean stopping treatment for severe patients.

Son Young-rae, head of the Social Strategy Division at the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Central Accident Response Headquarters, explained, "ICUs are isolation wards requiring about twice the staff, leading to heavy consumption of medical resources. The purpose is to transfer patients to general ICUs to use staff efficiently," adding, "If patients who have lost infectiousness after 20 days continue to be treated in COVID-19 ICUs, medical resources are used inefficiently." He noted that the "20 days from symptom onset" criterion for release from isolation is a globally accepted standard.

Public reactions were mixed. Kim, a person in their 70s from Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, who came to submit the complaint to the prosecution, said, "Quarantine is science. Everything has been calculated scientifically. The government's position is that since there is a shortage of beds and no sharp measures, they want to remove some patients and operate the medical system well," adding, "In difficult times, everyone should know how to yield and help. No one can ask only for their side to be favored," expressing support for the government's administrative order.

On the other hand, Seo, a person in their 50s met near Seocho Station on Subway Line 2, expressed concern, saying, "The government's administrative order seems too harsh. If they discharge critically ill patients whose lives are in danger, it feels like telling them to die."

Meanwhile, the current occupancy rate of COVID-19 ICUs is at saturation. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Central Accident Response Headquarters as of 5 p.m. on the 26th, 1,070 out of 1,356 nationwide COVID-19 severe patient dedicated beds are in use, with an occupancy rate of 78.9%. In the Seoul metropolitan area, where the outbreak is concentrated, the rate is even higher at 83.6%.

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