A plan to establish a branch of the National Police Hospital in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, is gaining momentum. The branch is a general hospital with 300 beds and is scheduled to open in 2029.
“Asan Police Hospital Construction Project” passed the preliminary feasibility study by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance's Fiscal Project Evaluation Committee. The total project cost is 172.4 trillion won ($123.2 million), and the total area of the project site in Chosa-dong, Asan City, is 28,717 square meters,: the Korean National Policy Agency (KNPA) said on Wednesday.
The KNPA plans to establish six centers specializing in treating diseases commonly found among police officers, as well as 24 medical departments at the Asan Police Hospital. The specialized treatment centers are a cardiovascular center, a mental health center, a respiratory treatment center, a musculoskeletal center, a urology center, and a health promotion and metabolic disease center. The hospital will also have an emergency room with 28 beds, an intensive care unit with 18 beds, and an infectious disease ward (negative pressure beds) with 20 beds.
The KNPA began a feasibility study in 2022 to establish a branch of the police hospital, saying, “There is only one police hospital, in Seoul, excluding more than 50 percent of police officers outside the capital area from medical support.”
Asan City in South Chungcheong Province was selected as the final candidate through a public bidding process. In 2023, the KNPA signed a memorandum of understanding with the municipal and provincial governments to establish the branch of the police hospital.
Additionally, the revision of the “Police Officer Health, Safety, and Welfare Basic Act” in February last year laid the legal basis for establishing police hospitals outside the Seoul metro region. The preliminary feasibility study for the Asan Police Hospital construction project began in May of the same year.
“The approval of the preliminary feasibility study for the Asan Police Hospital construction project is the result of the collective aspirations of all 140,000 police officers,” said Yoo Jae-sung, acting commissioner of the KNPA. “We will ensure that all processes, from securing the budget to construction, are carried out smoothly to improve the working conditions and morale of frontline police officers.”