The government has settled on implementing the "8-week rule," which makes long-term treatment for minor auto insurance patients more stringent, on Sept. 10. The government plans to continue consultations with stakeholders, including the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korean medicine community, until the system is implemented.
According to the insurance industry on the 29th, the government plans to submit to the Vice Ministers' meeting a draft amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Automobile Damage Compensation Security Act that specifies Sept. 10 as the start date for the 8-week rule. The government is said to have set Sept. 10 for implementation because stakeholders need preparation time.
The 8-week rule is a system that requires minor car accident patients (injury grades 12 to 14) to submit an additional medical certificate and undergo a separate review if they receive treatment beyond eight weeks after the accident. It is being pursued to reduce leakage of auto insurance payouts and ease the burden of premiums.
It was originally slated to take effect early this year, but its introduction has been delayed due to opposition from the Korean medicine industry and some consumer groups. The Association of Korean Medicine (AKOM) opposes it, saying, "The 8-week rule restricts treatment for minor patients by a uniform standard and poses a serious risk of infringing on the public's right to treatment."
The Ministry of Health and Welfare also recently requested that supplementary measures be prepared so that the implementation of the 8-week rule does not excessively increase the financial burden on the national health insurance. If policyholders who fail the review after eight weeks receive additional treatment, the expense could be shifted from auto insurance to the national health insurance, increasing the fiscal burden.
The government plans first to submit to the Vice Ministers' meeting a decree amendment that only revises the implementation date. The supplementary measures requested by the Ministry of Health and Welfare are said to be discussed later. Efforts to persuade the Korean medicine industry will also continue. The amendment will be finalized after going through the Vice Ministers' meeting and the Cabinet meeting.
Meanwhile, auto insurance results swung to a loss in the first half of this year for the first time in six years. In the first half, non-life insurers' auto insurance recorded a loss of 189 billion won. In the first half of last year, it recorded a profit of 30.2 billion won. The non-life industry says rising treatment costs for minor patients are worsening the auto insurance loss ratio, and argues the 8-week rule should be implemented to improve this.