Seoul-Type Postpartum Care Expenses 'Significantly' Change... Usage Limits by Category Abolished

Usage Period Extended from 60 Days or 6 Months to 1 Year

The "Seoul-type Postpartum Care Expense," a voucher worth 1 million KRW provided to mothers residing in Seoul, will become more convenient to use. The previously separate limits of 500,000 KRW per usage category have been integrated, and the usage period has been extended to one year.

On the 19th, Seoul City announced that the Seoul-type Postpartum Care Expense, which has benefited about 40,000 people since last September as part of the "Birth Support Seoul Project" to overcome low birth rates, will undergo major improvements starting this September. The Seoul-type Postpartum Care Expense cannot be used for postpartum care center fees but can be used for mother and newborn health management services and postpartum care expense services.

First, the city will integrate the previously separated 500,000 KRW limits for mother and newborn health management services and postpartum care expense services into a single 1 million KRW limit, allowing users to freely choose the services they want. The mother and newborn health management service involves health managers visiting homes to assist with postpartum care. The postpartum care expense service can be used for purchasing medicines, herbal medicine, health supplements necessary for postpartum recovery, or services including postpartum yoga and Pilates.

The mandatory 10% co-payment required when using the mother and newborn health management service will also be abolished. Previously, when paying 500,000 KRW, 450,000 KRW was deducted from the voucher, and 50,000 KRW had to be paid out-of-pocket, which caused issues where users either left a balance unused or had to pay extra to fully utilize the voucher.

The usage period for the Seoul-type Postpartum Care Expense will be significantly extended to "within one year after birth." Previously, the mother and newborn health management service had to be used within 60 days from the date of birth, and the postpartum care expense service had to be used within six months from the voucher issuance date. A city official stated, "This change reflects the voices of mothers who found it difficult to use the voucher within the period due to difficulty going out immediately after childbirth."

This improvement will apply to applicants from September 1, but it will also be retroactively applied to mothers who gave birth from January this year. Approximately 16,174 mothers are expected to receive additional benefits.

To reflect these improvements, the related system will be temporarily suspended for nine days from August 26 to September 3. From September 4, points and usage periods can be checked on the "Seoul Mom Care System" website or the app of the card company that issued the voucher.

The Seoul-type Postpartum Care Expense can be applied for through the Seoul Mom Care website or the local community service center in the resident’s district. To apply in person at the community service center, applicants must bring an ID and a mobile phone for identity verification.

Kim Seon-soon, Director of the Seoul City Women and Family Office, said, "We have made significant improvements this time by incorporating the voices of mothers who actually used the service over the past year," and added, "Seoul City will continue to actively gather mothers’ opinions and improve the system."

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