Doctors are going on strike... The real reason convenience store medicine supplies can't be increased

No Additional Approved Drugs in 12 Years
Advisory Committee for Expanding Items Ineffective

Amid doctors' announcement of a general strike in protest against the government's plan to increase medical school admission quotas, interest in over-the-counter emergency medicines sold at convenience stores is rising. Although demand for these emergency medicines has steadily increased, the number of approved medicines has not increased at all during the 12 years since the system was introduced. In particular, there are serious concerns about the potential impact if the doctors' strike materializes, as two types of medicines commonly used as children's antipyretics are currently experiencing supply instability.

According to the Emergency Medicine Citizens' Network, a civic group, the Ministry of Health and Welfare's advisory committee on emergency medicines, which is supposed to review the list of emergency medicine items, has no activity plans yet. Originally, the Ministry planned to form the advisory committee in October last year to discuss expanding emergency medicines, but the activities have been postponed due to the controversy over increasing medical school quotas.

Kim Yeon-hwa, the operating committee chairperson of the Emergency Medicine Citizens' Network, said, "Since October last year, when the advisory committee was supposed to start its activities, we have submitted five written and online petitions urging the committee to operate," adding, "However, we have not received any response so far."

The emergency medicine sales system allows the sale of medicines at 24-hour, year-round stores other than pharmacies to improve the convenience of purchasing medicines. Following the revision of the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, convenience stores have been allowed to sell 13 items since November 2012, including five types of antipyretic analgesics, two types of cold medicines, four types of digestive aids, and two types of patches.

The problem is that after 12 years of implementation, the 13 items have remained unchanged. According to the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, emergency medicines sold outside pharmacies are designated by the Minister of Health and Welfare from among general medicines that can be urgently used for mild symptoms, up to 20 types. In other words, the number can be increased up to 20 without amending the law.

In particular, the two types of children's Tylenol (tablet and suspension) have experienced several supply instabilities, but the government has not even begun discussions to designate alternative medicines. According to the convenience store industry, during the COVID-19 period, overseas companies producing related products focused on adult medicines, causing supply instability, but no effective countermeasures have been found. Although children's Ibuprofen syrup is also included as an antipyretic analgesic in emergency medicines, it has a different ingredient from Tylenol, and many families alternate between the two. Therefore, if the supply of either is unstable, families with young children could suffer.

Korea Johnson & Johnson Sales Ltd. (Kenview) stated, "In the case of children's Tylenol suspension, some products from other companies have issues such as 'browning,' leading to shortages, but we are increasing production to supply more," adding, "It should be easy to find at convenience stores."

Since the introduction of the emergency medicine system, convenience stores have become nationwide emergency pharmacies. According to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service, the supply value of emergency medicines was 15.3 billion KRW in 2013, the year after the system was implemented, increasing more than threefold to 43.5 billion KRW in 2019 and 53.7 billion KRW in 2022.

The convenience store industry continuously requests the expansion of the emergency medicine system. A convenience store industry official said, "Emergency medicines account for about 1% of total convenience store sales, which is minimal, but their public role is more significant," adding, "Along with selecting alternative products for medicines with unstable supply, the system should be expanded to include essential medicines for daily life such as antidiarrheals, burn ointments, artificial tears, and motion sickness medicines."

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