KCS and NHIS Strengthen Crackdown on Financial Fraud in Long-Term Care Insurance for the Elderly

Inflated Import Prices of Elderly Welfare Equipment Defraud Insurance Funds
Fraud Amounting to 226.9 Billion KRW Detected Over the Past 5 Years
Customs Service "Strengthening Collaboration and Crackdown with NHIS and Related Agencies"

The Korea Customs Service announced on the 10th that it plans to strengthen crackdowns on offenders who embezzle funds from the Long-term Care Insurance for the Elderly in collaboration with the National Health Insurance Service this year.

The crackdown is being promoted as a measure to preemptively block illegal activities that exploit the increasing demand for welfare equipment in line with the growing elderly population to embezzle funds from the Long-term Care Insurance for the Elderly.

The main welfare equipment used by the elderly population includes adult walkers, bath chairs, electric beds, and pressure ulcer prevention cushions. Under the welfare equipment benefit system, the government currently supports more than 85% of the total cost through the Long-term Care Insurance for the Elderly when the elderly or vulnerable groups purchase (or rent) these items.

However, recently, some import companies have been caught exploiting the fact that insurance benefits are based on import prices by falsely inflating the prices of imported goods, embezzling the difference between the actual price and the inflated price from the insurance funds. Over the past five years, the amount embezzled from the Long-term Care Insurance for the Elderly has reached a total of 226.9 billion KRW.

The problem is that such acts undermine the soundness of the insurance funds and can also transfer damage to socially vulnerable groups, who are the final purchasers.

Accordingly, the Korea Customs Service plans to make this year the inaugural year for eradicating offenders who embezzle insurance funds and to strengthen crackdowns. Since 2015, the Korea Customs Service has regularly obtained welfare equipment benefit-related data from the National Health Insurance Service, and since last year, it has additionally secured market survey results on welfare equipment distribution prices to utilize in crackdowns.

This year, the collaboration with the National Health Insurance Service will be further strengthened to significantly expand the scope of investigations. Based on information obtained from the National Health Insurance Service, the Korea Customs Service plans to analyze all import-export companies suspected of embezzling insurance funds and root out illegal activities.

A Korea Customs Service official said, “We will continue crackdowns to severely punish malicious crimes that disrupt the livelihood economy and embezzle public funds,” adding, “Above all, we will strengthen communication with related agencies to recover the unfair profits of the companies caught.”

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