Nursing Sector "Regret Over Delay of Nursing Act Legislation"... Minister of Welfare Visits Korean Nurses Association

by Lee Gwanju

Published 17 Apr.2023 16:53(KST)

On the 17th, the Korean Nurses Association (KNA) expressed regret over the failure to submit and vote on the Nursing Act bill at last week's National Assembly plenary session. On the same day, Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyu-hong visited the KNA to discuss key issues.

Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyu-hong is shaking hands with Kim Young-kyung, President of the Korean Nurses Association, during a visit to the association on the 17th.
[Photo by Ministry of Health and Welfare]

In its statement, the KNA said, "Speaker Kim Jin-pyo, after consulting with representatives of each negotiation group, decided to handle the alternative Nursing Act bill at the next plenary session because discussions on this issue are ongoing between the government and related organizations, allowing for additional discussions between the ruling and opposition parties to come up with a reasonable alternative." However, the KNA criticized, "The mediation proposal on the Nursing Act presented by the ruling party and government on the 11th severely undermined the core purpose and duties of the Nursing Act and was a hastily prepared, rushed bill just two days before the plenary session." It added, "Forcing additional consultations and discussions on such a mediation proposal unilaterally denies the Nursing Act alternative prepared through bipartisan agreement and completely disregards the discussion process and procedures in the relevant standing committee."

The KNA also refuted claims that the enactment of the Nursing Act would allow nurses to open private clinics and infringe on doctors' medical practice areas, calling them "completely fabricated fake news" and emphasizing that "the Ministry of Health and Welfare directly confirmed this fact during the Health and Welfare Committee's bill review process." It pointed out that the government bears responsibility for the emergence of such claims. The KNA stated, "The Ministry of Health and Welfare, which holds the authority to interpret relevant laws, has been passive and mechanically neutral, neither actively mediating between organizations nor clarifying positions despite absurd claims that the Nursing Act would allow nurses to open clinics independently, practice medicine alone, or that nursing assistants were excluded from the Nursing Act." It sharply questioned, "We cannot understand why there is suddenly a need for further consultations now." The KNA emphasized that the current Nursing Act bill is a consensus compromise prepared through careful consideration by both ruling and opposition parties and the government, and expressed its intention to maintain the original bill.

Amid ongoing conflicts in the health and medical community over the enactment of the Nursing Act, Minister Cho Kyu-hong visited the KNA on the same day to discuss key issues such as the comprehensive support plan for nursing personnel and the Nursing Act with KNA President Kim Young-kyung. Minister Cho requested, "As the Korean Nurses Association celebrates its 100th anniversary, we ask the KNA to make active efforts to provide essential medical services to the public stably." He also said, "The government will actively establish policies to improve nurses' working environments."