Jeong Eun-kyung, the Minister candidate of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, noted during a confirmation hearing at the National Assembly on the 18th regarding the allegations of 'hospital misconduct' against Kang Seon-woo, the Minister candidate of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, that "principles must have been upheld."
People Power Party lawmaker Choi Bo-yoon asked, "Isn't it the case that even if Kang Seon-woo is a member of the Health and Welfare Committee, there shouldn't be exceptions?" To this, Jeong Eun-kyung replied, "That's right," and responded accordingly.
Recently, Minister candidate Kang Seon-woo was accused of obstructing her duties related to the hospital misconduct allegations and has been reported to the police, which assigned the case to the Gangseo Police Station to commence an investigation.
Candidate Kang is under suspicion of violating quarantine guidelines by leveraging her status as a member of the National Assembly during the spread of COVID-19 in July 2023.
At the time, only those who had received a PCR negative result within '71 hours' could enter the ward. However, as Kang attempted to visit a hospitalized family member at Hospital A and was restricted due to COVID-19 quarantine measures, she is said to have created a disturbance by leveraging her status as a lawmaker.
In response, the candidate Jeong said, "I can't specify what kind of hospital it is or the situation, so I can't provide detailed statements," but she added that "the guidelines should be followed by everyone."
When lawmaker Choi asked, "If (Candidate Kang) thinks it was inappropriate, is there any intention to express regret?" the candidate Jeong replied, "I don't think it's something I should express regret about," and requested understanding.