Doctors' group urges new government to prioritize restoring trust

The Korean Medical Association (KMA), which held its last regular briefing under the incumbent administration, urged the new president to restore trust between the government and the medical community.

“The new president to be elected should prioritize the resolution of the current issue so that medical students and resigned trainee doctors can return to their original positions as soon as possible,” said Kim Sung-geun, a spokesperson for the association, at a regular briefing on Thursday, the early voting day for the 21st presidential election. “He must resolve the situation by restoring fundamental trust.”

“Social unrest is growing due to prolonged government-doctor conflict and the failure to resolve the healthcare collapse,” Kim said. “The new president should prioritize resolving the conflict to promote social stability. Many voices in political circles agree with this.”

Above all, the voices of the younger generation should be heard, KMA's Kim said. The Sept. 4, 2020, agreement between the government and doctors should not be torn to shreds in just a few years, he said.

“The younger generation is demanding certainty about the future,” Kim said. “We need to change the reality that fears of criminal penalties prevent them from entering the frontline of defending lives. We must stop treating doctors like state property,” he emphasized.

“The call for the government to regain trust at a fundamental level is not just from the younger generation of doctors but from all young people in Korea,” he said. “Young people have to live in a different society from the older generation. The new president, who will lead the government in the future, has a responsibility to listen to these voices.”

The KMA spokesperson also called for improving the healthcare policymaking structure. He cited changes in the composition of the Health Insurance Policy Review Committee and the Healthcare Policy Review Committee as examples.

“Expert voices should be respected, and their participation in discussions on a sustainable health insurance system and the healthcare policymaking process should be practically guaranteed,” Kim said. “Unilateral policy implementation can lead to the collapse of the medical field. The government must institutionalize the guarantee of expert participation and establish a system that fully consults and coordinates with experts who know the medical field best.”

“The KMA does not want conflict. We have a mission to protect people's health and lives. We are ready to work together in good faith for the government's success and to improve public health. We hope we can make good policies together,” Kim said. “We sincerely hope the new government will restore trust in the medical community and establish future-oriented healthcare policies. We look forward to a rational Korea.”

KMA President Kim Taek-woo will personally deliver a message to the new government at a briefing on June 4, the day after the presidential election. The nation’s largest doctors’ group encourages people to participate in early voting and the presidential election through its official website.