The government noted it will speed up medical reform, including strengthening regional and essential healthcare, even amid the impeachment crisis. It urged participation in preventive vaccine administration as the influenza (flu) outbreak becomes more serious.
Vice Minister Park Min-soo said during a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters held at the government complex in Sejong on 3rd, "We are making progress in discussions on medical reform to revive regional and essential healthcare, including preparing a second implementation plan for medical reform." He added, "We will steadily promote the medical reform tasks promised to the public in the future."
The Ministry of Health and Welfare held a discussion forum on ‘Promoting Regional Hospitals and Vitalizing Primary Healthcare’ on 30th of last month, and plans to hold another forum next week to gather opinions on reforms regarding non-benefit and co-insurance.
It also stated it will operate an emergency medical system focusing on critically ill and emergency patients without any disruptions. Vice Minister Park noted, "We are implementing various measures to maintain stable emergency rooms and back-up medical services, including the additional designation of regional emergency medical centers for critically ill and emergency patients, the operation of fever clinics for respiratory patients such as those with influenza, and the new designation of regional cardiovascular disease centers."
He continued, "In preparation for the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, we plan to operate an emergency response period from January 22 to February 5 for two weeks," adding, "We will prepare operating plans for emergency medical systems with local governments and designate hospitals and pharmacies that will be open during the holiday period to respond without any issues."
The Ministry of Health and Welfare stated that the influenza outbreak will likely continue for the time being and urged for vaccinations. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, during the last week of 2024 (December 22-28), of the 1,000 outpatients visiting 300 influenza surveillance medical institutions nationwide, an average of 73.9 were suspected of having influenza, about 2.4 times the 31.3 from the previous week.
Vice Minister Park stated, "The influenza outbreak is expected to continue for the time being," urging, "Please comply with personal hygiene regulations such as wearing masks and washing hands, and actively participate in vaccinations, especially for seniors over 65 years old, pregnant women, and children."
He also urged, "The government has designated and is operating 115 fever clinics since December 23, so please prioritize using the fever clinics if you need care during the night or on holidays."