Medical School Quota Increase Sparks Government-Medical Sector Clash... Medical Community "Considering Halting Discussions," Government "Gathering Opinions from Multiple Angles"

Ministry of Health and Welfare to Discuss Medical School Quotas at Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee
Medical Association Opposes... "Violation of Medical Agreement"
Government Says "Need to Hear Various Opinions"

The government and the medical community appear to be clashing once again over the 'increase in medical school quotas.' When the Ministry of Health and Welfare decided to discuss the increase in medical school quotas at the Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee, which includes experts from the medical community, patient groups, and other sectors, the medical community strongly opposed it, claiming it violated the 'medical agreement.' Conversely, the government insisted that it was an unavoidable decision to gather diverse opinions.

Health and Welfare Minister Cho Kyu-hong is giving a greeting at the Expert Forum on the Supply and Demand Forecast of Medical Personnel held at the Royal Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 27th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Korean Medical Association (KMA) issued a press release on the 27th stating, "We express deep regret and anger toward the Ministry of Health and Welfare for instantly nullifying the September 4 Medical Agreement (the agreement made between the Ministry and the KMA on September 4, 2020) and the discussions held so far in the 'Medical Issues Consultative Body.'

The KMA criticized, "Through the previous medical agreement, it was agreed that the issue of medical school quotas would be discussed in the 'Medical Consultative Body' after the stabilization of COVID-19, and the government promised not to push unilateral policies. However, the medical agreement has been reduced to a scrap of paper in an instant, and the trust relationship between the medical community and the government has been brutally trampled." This is interpreted as raising concerns about discussing the medical school quota issue not only through the government-medical community consultative body but also through another channel, the Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee.

The KMA stated, "We strongly condemn the government for publicly denying the reason for the existence of the Medical Issues Consultative Body and declaring discussions with the medical community meaningless. We also announce that we will carefully consider immediately suspending all ongoing and future discussions with the government in various fields," adding, "We clarify that the responsibility for the uncontrollably escalating collapse of essential and regional medical care lies entirely with the Ministry of Health and Welfare, which has caused public anxiety with irresponsible remarks and betrayed the trust of the medical community."

The image shows Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo and Chairman Choi Dae-jip of the Korean Medical Association reaching a medical agreement on September 4, 2020. The government and the medical association agreed to discuss the issue of increasing medical school quotas in the medical consultation body after stabilizing COVID-19. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

On the other hand, the government explained that it respected the September 4 Medical Agreement and formed the Medical Issues Consultative Body in January this year, discussing with the KMA ways to strengthen essential and regional medical care, including expanding the medical workforce. It emphasized, "Expanding the medical workforce is an important issue that requires multifaceted opinion gathering from consumer groups, patient groups, the media, and various experts. Therefore, it is necessary to continue gathering opinions not only through discussions with the medical community but also through the legally mandated Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee, which includes diverse stakeholders."

Furthermore, the Ministry of Health and Welfare added, "Going forward, we will continue social discussions on expanding the medical workforce through the Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee while faithfully continuing discussions on medical issues within the Medical Issues Consultative Body." This is interpreted as the government showing a stronger will to push forward at the government level, shedding the perception that it is being led by the medical community regarding the issue of increasing medical school quotas.

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