Government and Medical Association Clash Over Expanding Discussion Participants on Medical School Quotas... Talks Continue

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korean Medical Association (KMA) have once again clashed over the issue of expanding medical school quotas. This comes as the Ministry announced its intention to continue discussions on medical school quotas not only through the Medical Issues Consultative Body (Consultative Body), which includes participation from the medical community, but also through the statutory Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee (HMPDC).

On the 29th, the Ministry and the KMA held the 12th Consultative Body meeting at Conference House Dalgaebi in Jung-gu, Seoul. Attending from the Ministry were Lee Hyung-hoon, Director of Health and Medical Policy; Cha Jeon-gyeong, Director of Health and Medical Policy Division; Song Yang-su, Director of Medical Workforce Policy Division; and Lim Kang-seop, Head of External Cooperation Team. From the KMA, attendees included Lee Kwang-rae, President of Incheon Medical Association; Park Jin-gyu, Vice President of KMA; Lee Jeong-geun, Full-time Vice President of KMA; Seo Jeong-seong, Director General of KMA; and Kang Min-gu, President of the Korean Intern Resident Association.

Director Lee Hyung-hoon opened the meeting by stating, “Starting from the first expert forum on workforce supply and demand held on the 27th, the government will continue to gather diverse opinions from the medical community, experts, patient and consumer groups, policy stakeholders, and the media.” He explained that according to the Framework Act on Health and Medical Services, public opinion must be collected when establishing and implementing health and medical policies that significantly impact citizens' lives. He added, “We will continue to operate the Medical Issues Consultative Body with the KMA in parallel to faithfully collect medical community opinions and reasonably reflect them in policy.”

In response, Lee Kwang-rae, President of the Incheon Medical Association, criticized, “This causes great loss and frustration to both the KMA and its members. Trust between parties is the most important factor in negotiations and discussions, and I request that the September 4, 2020, government-medical agreement and the 11 consultative meetings held so far do not become mere empty promises.” The September 4, 2020, government-medical agreement refers to the consensus that discussions on increasing medical school quotas would proceed through a task force composed of the government and medical community after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides.

President Lee questioned, “Is the September 4, 2020, agreement, which states that the medical school quota issue will be discussed in the government-medical consultative body after COVID-19 stabilizes and that unilateral policy enforcement will not be pursued, still valid?” He continued, “What happens if the decisions of the Medical Issues Consultative Body and the social consensus body (HMPDC) conflict? What role does a consultative body that has lost its reason for existence play going forward?” He emphasized, “The most effective policy the government can implement is to improve the system so that next year’s interns apply more to essential medical specialties and to enable essential medical specialists to return to needed fields.”

Meanwhile, the 13th Consultative Body meeting is scheduled to be held at the same location on the 13th of next month.

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