16,000 Cases of Foreigners' Health Insurance Fraud Over 5 Years

Lee Gae-ho "Need for Supplementary Measures Such as Reward System for Reporting"

Lee Gae-ho 의원

It has been reported that over the past five years, there have been 16,000 cases of foreigners abusing health insurance benefits by using others' identities or fraudulent claims, amounting to 568 million KRW, significantly undermining the credibility of the health insurance system.

Lee Gae-ho, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea (representing Damyang, Hampyeong, Yeonggwang, and Jangseong), stated in a press release on the 16th, "An analysis of the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) audit data revealed that fraudulent claims by foreigners have caused not only financial losses to the NHIS but also severe waste of medical resources."

To address this, the NHIS introduced a system requiring medical institutions to verify identification cards for identity confirmation; however, limitations remain in the collection and punishment related to fraudulent claims.

Most foreigners whose identities were stolen are unqualified individuals whose whereabouts are difficult to trace, resulting in many cases where investigations are halted or effective collection is challenging even after reporting to investigative agencies. In many instances, the perpetrators have left the country or their locations are unknown, making collection impossible.

Lee emphasized, "Among the 16,000 fraudulent cases over the past five years, only 49 cases (0.31%) resulted in punishment," and urged, "The NHIS and relevant authorities must establish institutional measures, such as a reward system for reporting, to prevent foreigners' fraudulent use of health insurance."

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