The Legislative Council's 'First Meeting' Next Week... Three Months After Legislative Agreement

by Lim Chunhan

Published 11 Dec.2020 21:03(KST)

Updated 11 Dec.2020 21:05(KST)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] The Korean Medical Association (KMA) and the government will hold the first meeting of the medical-government consultative body on the 16th. This comes about three months after agreeing to form the consultative body on September 4.

Cho Min-ho, Planning Director of the KMA, stated, "The Special Committee for the Medical Community Struggle (Beomtuwi) decided to hold a meeting of the medical-government consultative body."

On the 2nd of this month, KMA President Choi Dae-jip and Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Kang Do-tae held a meeting with the main agenda of preliminary discussions on forming the consultative body, leading to expectations that the body will soon be operational. Although Beomtuwi had shown a stance of postponing the formation of the consultative body citing reasons such as the passage of the public medical school budget bill, after internal discussions, they ultimately decided to launch the medical-government consultative body.

The medical community opposed the government's health and medical policies such as the establishment of public medical schools and the expansion of medical school quotas, and staged a collective strike in August. However, on September 4, they agreed with the government and ruling party to form the medical-government consultative body to re-discuss related policies and subsequently suspended collective actions. Nonetheless, the KMA and Beomtuwi maintained the position that "discussions on the establishment of public medical schools and the expansion of medical school quotas are not subjects for discussion before the stabilization of COVID-19."