[News Terms] 'Mayak Jungdokja Chiryoboho Gigan' Pleads for Help Amid Financial Difficulties

Although the government has declared a 'war on drugs' due to the rapid increase in drug offenders, it has been revealed that treatment protection institutions that help drug addicts with treatment and rehabilitation, as well as support for them, are very insufficient. When Incheon Chamsarang Hospital, which has the most drug treatment beds in the metropolitan area, reportedly expressed management difficulties and is considering closure soon, the government announced its position to strengthen support by preparing special measures.

According to Article 3 of the Presidential Decree 'Regulations on Treatment and Protection of Drug Addicts,' the Minister of Health and Welfare or the governors of each city and province may designate national/public or private medical institutions as treatment protection institutions to conduct screening tests for drug users and provide treatment and protection for drug addicts. Accordingly, as of the end of March this year, a total of 24 institutions have been designated and operated as drug addict treatment protection institutions in Korea, including Seoul Eunpyeong Hospital and the National Mental Health Center, Busan Medical Center, Daegu Medical Center, Daegu Daedong Hospital, Incheon Metropolitan Medical Center, Incheon Chamsarang Hospital, Gwangju Municipal Psychiatric Hospital, Daejeon Chamdana Hospital, Ulsan Mothers Hospital, Gyeonggi Provincial Medical Center Uijeongbu Hospital, Yongin Psychiatric Hospital, Uiwang Gyeyo Hospital, National Chuncheon Hospital, Cheongju Medical Center, National Gongju Hospital, Iksan Wonkwang University Hospital, Gimje Shinsegye Hospital, Jeollabuk-do Maeumsarang Hospital, National Naju Hospital, Pohang Medical Center, National Bugok Hospital, Gyeongnam Yangsan Hospital, and Jeju Yeongang Hospital.

Park Min-su, Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, is announcing the government's position regarding Incheon Chamsarang Hospital, a leading domestic drug treatment hospital, at the briefing room of the Government Seoul Office Annex on the 1st.
[Photo by Jo Yong-jun]

However, many of these treatment protection institutions for addicts are facing operational difficulties such as treatment interruptions due to lack of treatment equipment or specialists. According to data received by People Power Party lawmaker Choi Yeon-sook from the Ministry of Health and Welfare in July, last year, the 21 government-designated hospitals had only 421 inpatients. Among them, Incheon Chamsarang Hospital (276 patients) and Gyeongnam National Bugok Hospital (134 patients) accounted for 97.3% of all patients, revealing that the remaining 19 institutions were largely ineffective. There were no hospitals in Seoul where drug addicts could receive inpatient treatment.

Another problem is that despite the increasing number of drug addicts and the difficulties in treatment, government and local governments' support for treatment costs is grossly insufficient, causing hospitals to incur losses every time they treat drug addicts. According to the '2022 Drug Crime White Paper' published by the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's Drug and Organized Crime Division, the number of drug offenders caught last year was a record high of 18,395. From January to March this year, 4,124 drug offenders were caught, a 33.9% increase compared to 3,080 in the same period last year.

On the other hand, the budget allocated for supporting drug treatment protection institutions this year is 820 million won (410 million won each from national and local governments), the same scale as last year. Although the Ministry of Health and Welfare included a plan to increase the related budget to 2.4 billion won (including local government funds) in next year's budget request, the Ministry of Economy and Finance blocked it, reducing the government budget proposal to about one-third of that amount. In the case of Incheon Chamsarang Hospital, treatment costs have exceeded the budget every year, resulting in unpaid amounts of 62.23 million won last year and 77 million won up to May this year.

Park Min-su, the 2nd Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, said, "It is true that the number of drug addicts is rapidly increasing, especially among young people, and treatment for drug addicts is important, but support for treatment protection institutions is insufficient." He promised, "We will prepare special measures, including national compensation for operational losses beyond simple treatment cost support." Vice Minister Park also said, "We will conduct a full survey of drug treatment protection institutions to prepare operational improvement plans and expand the number of institutions in the future," adding, "We will strive to ensure that drug addicts receive sufficient treatment and return to society through institutional improvements."

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