Korea's first "infectious disease hospital" will begin construction in the first half of this year.The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said Thursday that it would build a hospital specializing in infectious diseases at Chosun University Hospital through public bidding. The bidding
Criticism is mounting that the National Assembly recommends oriental infertility treatment that has not been scientifically proven to be safe and effective.Critics point out the unreasonableness of the “Amendment to the Maternal and Child Health Act,” which passed the plenary session of the National
If medical institutions must establish personal medical data transmission systems under the revised Medical Service Act, the government should directly or indirectly support the cost, a parliamentary report said.More specifically, based on the financial industry's use of financial data that has alre
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) approved 118 medical products in December; 92 were manufactured and 26 were imported.As a result, the cumulative number of medical products approved in 2023 totaled 1,823, the ministry said in its report on the status of medical product approvals for Decem
Since June 2023, the National Assembly has faced an impasse over a proposed amendment to the Medical Service Act, intended to authorize telemedicine formally. A government official expressed concern that the detailed provisions within the four different revision bills might be hindering the legislat
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), which is organizing a symposium on artificial intelligence (AI)-based medical products jointly with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has launched a preparatory planning team.The ministry said Friday that it is launching the AIRIS 2024 Preparat
Surgeries for cosmetic purposes, such as nasal valve reconstruction for nasal cosmetic purposes and varicose vein surgery for cosmetic purposes, rather than for treating nasal congestion, will not be eligible for health insurance coverage.On Thursday, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) released
The government plans to allow "domestic advertisements to attract foreign patients," prohibited under the Medical Service Act, in medical tourism special zones.The plan is part of the Ministry of Economy and Finance’s “Economic Policy Direction for 2024,” announced Thursday.The ministry said it woul
AstraZeneca Korea said Tuesday that its rare disease treatment, Koselugo (selumetinib), will be covered by health insurance for the treatment of pediatric patients aged 3 to 18 years with neurofibromatosis type 1 with plexiform neurofibroma (PN) starting January 1, 2024. Continuation of Koselugo rei
Starting this year, syphilis will move from a Level 4 infectious disease subject to sample surveillance to a Level 3 disease subject to full surveillance.On the other hand, mpox, a Level 2 infectious disease, will be converted to a Level 3 infectious disease and managed under the general healthcare
In the third quarter of this year, 1.04 million people were working in the healthcare industry. That marked an increase of 3.7 percent, or 37,000, from a year ago.According to the Health Industry Employment Trends for the third quarter released by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHI
In the final month of 2023, non-face-to-face treatment has returned to the center of controversy. The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced the revision of the non-contact medical treatment pilot project in early December. It has expanded the scope of telemedicine to include new patients, nightti
In response to the government's “Mental Health Policy Innovation Plan,” the National Assembly has urged it to proceed after analyzing the sustainability of policy implementation.Regarding the proposed introduction of the “judicial hospitalization system,” which draws keen public attention, the Assem
The year 2023 marked significant transformations in the medical and pharmaceutical sectors. Despite facing resistance from the medical community, President Yoon Suk Yeol's administration declared its intention to increase the number of medical school seats starting in 2025. Additionally, 2023 witnes
The government’s “integrated diagnostic support project for rare diseases,” expanded in 2023, has tripled the number of its beneficiaries compared to 2022 while nearly halving their diagnosis time.The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KCDA) announced the project's results on Thursday.The
The number of cancer patients in Korea increased again in 2021 as the number of cancer screenings, which had decreased due to Covid-19, increased again and the scope of registration expanded.It was also found that six out of 10 cancer patients were those who survived for more than five years.The Min
The Association of Korean Medicine has called for the correct use of the name of traditional medicine practitioners.The association expressed concern that some media outlets may convey incorrect information by mistakenly calling Chinese medicine doctors or acupuncturists Korean medicine doctors.It i
The government said it would reduce health insurance coverage for lower abdominal and urinary ultrasound exams, beginning next year. This initiative is aimed at curbing overtesting and preventing the misallocation of health insurance funds. Earlier this year, the government reduced benefits for uppe