Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said on the 22nd, "The problem of emergency rooms refusing to accept patients, known as the 'emergency room ping-pong' issue, is a matter of nationwide concern and worry, and we must find an alternative one way or another."
Kim stated accordingly in his opening remarks at a field meeting with 119 paramedics held at the Jongno Fire Station in Seoul late that night.
Kim said, "Even recently, there have been continued heartbreaking cases where people could not reach an emergency room in time, searched for an emergency room but, due to a lack of consolidation, lost their lives." He cited as an example a recent case in Busan in which a 10-year-old girl was refused admission by 12 hospitals before finally being transported and treated.
Kim added, "The concern about this problem is so serious that the government is trying to find alternatives, but it is not easy," and said, "We have held two or three recent meetings to hear from firefighters and from hospitals, but it seems the gap between positions is not narrowing well."
He continued, "Thinking that we must find an alternative, I came today to the fire station because I thought it would be best to hear from the responders who are on the scene during the most desperate moments for emergency patients."
Earlier, President Lee Jae-myung, at a Ministry of Health and Welfare briefing on the 16th, pointed out the emergency room ping-pong problem and ordered measures to be drawn up and reported.