[Reporter’s Notebook] Legalizing Telemedicine, but the ‘Public’ Is Missing

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On February 9th, the second medical-government consultation between the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korean Medical Association was held. The agenda was telemedicine. At this meeting, the Ministry and the Medical Association agreed on the principle that telemedicine should be used as an auxiliary means to face-to-face treatment and operated mainly for follow-up patients. Two months later, on the 18th, a discussion on the legalization of telemedicine was held at the National Assembly, attended by three platform industry representatives, a practicing physician, a lawyer, and a Ministry of Health and Welfare official. The main issues raised were the problems that could arise if only follow-up visits were allowed. There were also demands for legislation that would promote the development of the digital healthcare industry.

However, nowhere was there the voice of medical consumers or the public who have used or will use telemedicine. In any forum or public hearing, the opinions of either the medical community or the platform industry dominate. Although one in four citizens (13.79 million people) have experienced telemedicine, there has been no case of collecting their experiences or sharing their needs during the consultation process. At best, only a very small number of consumer group representatives have been invited.

Telemedicine is now at risk of being immediately suspended. If next month the COVID-19 crisis alert level is lowered from the current ‘Severe’ to ‘Caution,’ the legal basis for allowing telemedicine will disappear. If telemedicine disappears, the damage will fall directly on workers who do not have time to visit hospitals due to work, working mothers raising children, and elderly people living in remote island and mountainous areas. While the medical vulnerable groups are in urgent need, the process of legalizing telemedicine is still dominated by a ‘turf war’ between the medical community and the platform industry.

According to a survey by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute last year, 62.3% of respondents were satisfied with telemedicine, and 87.9% expressed willingness to use telemedicine in the future. This means that a significant portion of the public has already experienced telemedicine and it has begun to deeply settle into daily life. The experiences of the public are the most valuable asset when creating policies and systems. Before it is too late, it is the responsibility of the government and the National Assembly to ensure that the voices of the public are reflected in the process of legalizing telemedicine.

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