Daegu Births Halved in 10 Years '19,340 → 10,139'... Announcement of Childbirth Support Measures

Increase Benefits for Families with Two or More Children

Support for Infertile Couples' Testing and Treatment Costs

Daegu City announced on the 31st that, as a first step to overcoming ultra-low birth rates, it will significantly expand support for multi-child families and infertile couples starting in 2024.

Last year, the number of births in Daegu was 10,139, which is about half of what it was over the past 10 years. In 2013, the number of births was 19,340, marking a 48% decrease over a decade. Additionally, the total fertility rate for the previous year was 0.76, falling short of the national average of 0.78.

Daegu City Sangyeok Government Office

Daegu City has also seen an increasing trend in the number of infertility diagnoses, prompting the city to establish proactive measures for pregnancy and childbirth. The number of infertility diagnoses in Daegu was 13,019 in 2020, 14,303 in 2021, and 15,388 last year, showing a significant rise.

Accordingly, Daegu City has relaxed the criteria for multi-child families from three or more children to two or more children to reduce the economic burden on families with many children and to provide focused support to couples hoping to have children, thereby fostering a city atmosphere friendly to pregnancy, childbirth, and child-rearing.

As a result, various benefits previously available only to families with three or more children will be extended to families raising two or more children. This change will increase the number of beneficiary households from about 20,000 to approximately 130,000, a roughly 6.5-fold increase.

The new multi-child family criteria will be applied from January 2024, allowing families to receive discounts on usage fees for public facilities under Daegu City, such as Daegu Medical Center and public parking lots, and to obtain the multi-child preferential ‘Aijoa Card’ to enjoy discounts at over 300 affiliated stores.

Furthermore, the admission congratulatory grant, which is provided when the third or subsequent child enters high school, will be extended to the second child as well, with 300,000 KRW for the second child and 500,000 KRW for the third and subsequent children. However, the subway fare discount benefit, which is significantly more generous compared to other cities, will remain applicable only to families with three or more children, considering the city’s financial situation.

Since 2023, Daegu City has completely abolished income criteria for the ‘Infertile Couples Treatment Cost Support Project,’ providing up to 1.1 million KRW per treatment to all infertile couples.

Nevertheless, despite this support, infertile couples have still borne 10% of the health insurance-covered costs themselves and have reported additional financial difficulties due to various examination fees and non-covered injection costs.

Therefore, Daegu City plans to issue an ‘Infertile Couples Support Voucher’ that covers the entire range from infertility diagnosis to treatment, minimizing the financial burden on infertile couples.

First, infertile couples who have resided in Daegu for more than six months can receive up to 200,000 KRW for their first-ever infertility diagnostic tests, including eight types of related examinations such as semen analysis and hysterosalpingography. They will also receive 100% coverage of their out-of-pocket expenses for health insurance-covered infertility treatments and can receive treatment support payments of up to 1.7 million KRW per treatment, the highest level nationwide. Additionally, non-covered injection costs for miscarriage prevention and implantation induction included in the treatment fees will be supported with an extra 100,000 KRW each, usable within a 300,000 KRW limit.

In this case, infertile couples can receive up to a total of 23 million KRW in support from diagnosis through treatment, which is the largest scale among metropolitan areas except for Seoul.

Daegu City plans to revise related ordinances in the second half of this year to support these measures and will proceed with full implementation in 2024 after preparatory steps including consultations with central government agencies and experts.

Hong Jun-pyo, Mayor of Daegu, said, “In an era where having and raising children is difficult, I hope our city’s support policies will help multi-child families and infertile couples,” adding, “We will continue to do our best to create a pregnancy and childbirth environment that citizens can relate to in order to overcome low birth rates.”

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