The amendment to the Medical Service Act that will provide a legal basis for telemedicine passed the National Assembly plenary session on the 2nd.
Telemedicine, which has been run as a pilot program for about 5 years and 9 months since the COVID-19 period, is being brought into the formal system. This institutionalization comes 15 years after a related amendment to the Medical Service Act was first submitted to the 18th National Assembly in 2010.
The amendment reflects the four agreed-upon principles with the medical community: ▲ in-person care as the rule ▲ clinic-level centered ▲ follow-up patients centered ▲ ban on dedicated institutions.
Patients eligible for telemedicine are, in principle, follow-up patients who have received in-person care for the same symptoms at the medical institution within a certain period. However, first-time patients may receive telemedicine if the patient's residence and the medical institution are in the same area. Patients with rare diseases and those with type 1 diabetes may receive both first-time and follow-up telemedicine without regional restrictions.
Institutions performing telemedicine are, in principle, limited to the clinic level. However, medical institutions at the hospital level and above are exceptionally permitted to provide telemedicine to specific groups, such as patients with rare diseases, patients with type 1 diabetes, inmates at correctional facilities, and patients who need postoperative follow-up.
Each medical institution's share of telemedicine will be capped to prohibit dedicated telemedicine-only institutions, and when non-covered services are provided, the medical professional must submit those details to the Minister of Health and Welfare.
Dedicated telemedicine-only institutions are prohibited. A rule limits each medical institution's share of telemedicine, and when non-covered services are provided, the medical professional must submit those details to the Minister of Health and Welfare. The physicians' association and others may prepare and recommend standard guidelines for medical professionals, and a self-regulatory mechanism has been introduced that allows requests for administrative guidance when violations are suspected.
Certain drugs, including narcotics, are restricted from remote prescribing regardless of whether there is a record of in-person care. However, exceptions are allowed when necessity is recognized, such as for patients with rare diseases. For conditions where visual information is essential, video visits are mandatory.
The amendment also stipulates procedures for medical professionals to explain the limits and characteristics of telemedicine and obtain patient consent, as well as the scope of medical professionals' legal liability. Patients are prohibited from impersonating others or deceiving medical professionals to obtain prescriptions.
A regulatory basis was also established for telemedicine intermediary platforms. When a telemedicine platform has subscribers above a certain size, it must obtain certification from the Minister of Health and Welfare, and it is subject to obligations such as prohibiting acts that encourage the misuse of medical services and drugs and prohibiting recommending or inducing patients to specific medical institutions.
The amendment is scheduled to be implemented one year after promulgation, following submission to and approval by the Cabinet. Before implementation, the Health and Welfare Ministry plans to reorganize the pilot program in line with the bill's intent and gradually expand the scope of application.
Health and Welfare Minister Jung Eun-kyeong said, "As alternatives have been prepared with the highest priority on the quality of care and patient safety, we will strive to ensure that people can use telemedicine safely and conveniently even after the law takes effect."