Vice Minister Park Minsu: "Medical Reform Tasks Will Be Thoroughly Organized to Continue Under the Next Administration"

Call for Thorough Emergency Medical Preparedness During May Holidays
Request for Medical Community Participation in Workforce Supply and Demand Estimation Committee

The government has announced its intention to continue the structural reform of the medical system that it has been pursuing so far without interruption, and to ensure that discussions can continue under the next administration. During the early May holiday period, the government called for thorough preparations, including the seamless operation of emergency medical services and the strengthening of the treatment network for critical illnesses.

Park Minsu, Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, is speaking at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on doctors' collective action held on the 24th at the Situation Room of the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 24th, Park Minsu, Second Vice Minister of Health and Welfare, held a Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on doctors' collective action at the Government Seoul Office and stated, "Currently, despite difficult circumstances, quantitative indicators such as the volume of medical services in the emergency medical system are being maintained relatively stably." He urged, "Each local government should review the effective measures implemented during the Chuseok and Lunar New Year holiday periods in the past, and focus on those measures to prepare for the upcoming holiday period next month."

Vice Minister Park explained, "Above all, the government is prioritizing the lives and health of the people and is doing its utmost to maintain the emergency medical system, including critical and emergency care." He reiterated, "Currently, despite challenging circumstances, quantitative indicators such as the volume of medical services in the emergency medical system are being maintained relatively stably."

On this day, the government is holding the '8th Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee of 2025' in the afternoon to review the detailed plan for the comprehensive secondary general hospital support project, which will officially begin in July. Following the first phase of medical reform measures announced in August last year?including restructuring of tertiary general hospitals, innovation in resident training, and the elimination of low-fee services?the second phase, announced in March this year, includes fostering comprehensive secondary hospitals to revitalize regional healthcare, reforms in non-reimbursed and indemnity insurance, and measures for a medical accident safety net. The government is pushing for structural reform across the entire medical system.

Vice Minister Park said, "In the case of the support project for restructuring tertiary general hospitals, which has been promoted since last September, there have been positive changes, such as a 35% increase in critical surgeries. I ask for the participation of many hospitals."

Additionally, with the promulgation and enforcement of a partial amendment to the 'Framework Act on Health and Medical Services' related to the establishment of the Medical Workforce Supply and Demand Estimation Committee on the 17th, the government is currently requesting recommendations for expert committee member candidates from suppliers, patient and consumer organizations, academic societies, and research institutes to form the committee. Vice Minister Park stated, "The supply and demand estimation results produced by the committee will serve as the foundation for medical workforce policy formulation," and requested, "I ask all organizations, including medical providers, to actively participate."

Furthermore, the government is promoting the 'Senior Doctor Support Project' as a measure to resolve the shortage of essential medical doctors in local areas and to minimize medical service gaps in the regions. This year, the project will support on-site personnel not only in public medical institutions such as regional medical centers but also in local health centers.

Vice Minister Park emphasized, "Systemic improvements must continue so that people in the Republic of Korea can receive appropriate medical care wherever they are." He added, "We will faithfully implement the tasks reflected in this year's budget and those reviewed and confirmed by the Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee, listening to feedback from the field. For tasks that are still under discussion, we will organize them thoroughly so that discussions can continue under the next administration."

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