Promotion to Raise the Upper Limit of Medical Expense Compensation for Adverse Drug Reaction Victims

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on the 15th that it will push to raise the payment amount for medical expenses under the relief benefits for adverse drug reactions.

The current upper limit for medical expense payments under the drug damage relief benefits is set at 20 million KRW. The relief benefit medical expenses are funded through the damage relief contributions, which consist of a basic contribution jointly borne by drug manufacturers and importers, and an additional contribution imposed on drugs for which relief benefits have been paid.

The Ministry explained that it decided to raise the upper limit for medical expense compensation under the relief benefits, considering the current status of damage relief contribution funds and the inflation rate. The specific amount of the increased payment limit will be determined through discussions with patient groups, medical experts, and the pharmaceutical industry.

Meanwhile, the digitization of the 'Drug Safety Card' provided to patients who have received relief benefits is also being promoted. The Ministry currently provides a physical card to patients who have received relief benefits such as disability compensation and medical expenses, which includes personal information, causes of adverse reactions, and suspected drugs, to prevent recurrence of adverse drug reactions. The aim is to improve the inconvenience of having to carry the card at all times and to expand accessibility to adverse drug reaction information by enabling patients' drug adverse reaction information to be stored and managed through a mobile phone application (app).

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