On the 6th before the Seol holiday, announcement of medical school expansion scale expected to be 1,500 to 2,000 students

Deliberation and Resolution at the Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee at 2 PM
Increase Based on a Shortage of 15,000 by 2035
Strong Response to Medical Sector Strikes and Collective Actions

The government will announce the scale of the expansion of medical school admission quotas for the 2025 academic year on the afternoon of the 6th. The expected increase is estimated to be around 1,500 to 2,000 students.

On that day, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) will review and decide on the scale of the medical school quota increase at the Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee (HMPDC) meeting held at 2 p.m., and then disclose the results.

Park Min-su, Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, said on KBS Radio that morning regarding the expansion of medical school quotas, "The announcement is imminent." However, discussions with the medical community are expected to continue until just before the announcement, so there may be variables.

He explained, "There is still dialogue with the medical community at the Medical Issues Consultative Body this morning, and the HMPDC will be held in the afternoon. We will report on the essential medical policy package and the comprehensive health insurance plan announced on the 1st, and also discuss the medical school quota. Depending on the (meeting) results, the announcement of the medical school quota increase may proceed accordingly."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The current medical school quota is 3,058 students and has been maintained for 18 years. At the time of the 2000 separation of prescribing and dispensing of medicine, the medical community requested a 10% reduction (351 students) in the medical school quota, but recently concerns about doctor shortages have emerged in essential medical fields such as surgery and pediatrics, as well as in rural areas.

On the 1st, at a public discussion chaired by President Yoon Seok-yeol, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced that considering a shortage of about 15,000 doctors by 2035, 10 years later, it would expand medical school admission quotas starting from the 2025 academic year.

According to a nationwide survey of demand for expansion at 40 medical schools announced by the government in November last year, universities hoped for an increase of at least 2,151 and up to 2,847 students in the 2025 academic year. When compiled, the scale of the medical school quota increase is mentioned to be around 1,500 to 2,000 students.

▲Emergency room. [Photo by Asia Economy DB]

However, last month, the Korean Association of Medical Colleges and Medical Schools announced that an increase of about 350 students is appropriate, showing a difference of opinion.

The government said it would decide the scale of the increase by comprehensively considering the on-site capacity of medical schools, regional medical infrastructure, and manpower redistribution plans, but the medical community, which has opposed the increase, is expected to immediately oppose the announcement of the increase scale on the day.

The day before, the Korean Intern Resident Association announced that according to its own survey of interns and residents at training hospitals nationwide (from December 30, 2023, to February 3, targeting about 10,000 interns and residents from 140 training hospitals), 88.2% said they would participate in collective actions such as strikes if the government increased the medical school quota. Because of this, the Ministry of Health and Welfare has been sensitive about the timing of disclosing the scale of the medical school quota increase.

It is analyzed that the decision not to mention the scale of the medical school quota increase together at the public discussion announcing the essential medical policy package on the 1st, and the urgent progress of the 2nd Comprehensive National Health Insurance Plan (2024?2028) over the weekend, all reflect awareness of the timing of the announcement of the medical school quota increase.

An MOHW official said, "The situation is special because we have to consider responses to collective medical actions (such as strikes)." The fact that the announcement is made just before the Lunar New Year holiday (February 9?12) is interpreted in the same context.

The government is expected to take a tough stance against collective actions such as medical strikes. If doctors strike, the government plans to immediately issue work commencement orders and respond according to principles.

On the 1st, Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyu-hong emphasized, "The government has prepared firm countermeasures against illegal actions (strikes) along with emergency medical care plans."

On that day, Vice Minister Park said, "The principle is to set the medical school quota at a sufficient level to solve the doctor shortage problem based on the supply and demand for 2035," and repeatedly asked for cooperation from the medical community.

Vice Minister Park appealed, "It is not desirable to threaten collective actions by holding the lives of the public or patient safety hostage. Although we have prepared countermeasures against the anticipated collective actions of the medical community, we hope medical professionals will refrain from such actions (such as strikes)."

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