A postpartum care center located in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. /Courtesy of News1

The Seoul city government announced on the 26th that a survey of 110 private postpartum care centers in the city conducted in Jul. and Aug. revealed that the average fees for standard rooms and special rooms amounted to 4.78 million won and 7.64 million won, respectively. These rates are 38% and 51% higher than the national average (standard room 3.47 million won, special room 5.04 million won).

According to the city, the average fee for public postpartum care centers was found to be 2.3 million won, which is about half the cost of private standard rooms. The Seoul city government explained that there is not much difference between private and public postpartum care centers in terms of mother and newborn care and convenience facilities.

All 110 private postpartum care centers offered paid additional services, such as massages. Only 34.8% disclosed the prices of these paid additional services on their postpartum care websites. According to the Mother and Child Health Act, postpartum care centers are required to disclose information on paid additional services on their websites. In case of violation, the Ministry of Health and Welfare may issue corrective orders and impose fines.

The Korea Consumer Agency received a total of 980 complaints regarding postpartum care centers over three years (January 2021 to March 2024). These included issues such as contract cancellation, termination, and penalty fees (50.5%) and non-fulfillment of contracts (18.5%). To prevent such complaints, the city plans to request an unfair terms review from the Korean Women's Association United and the Fair Trade Commission. Kim Mi-kyung, head of Seoul's Fair Economy Division, stated, “We will actively improve issues that are closely related to the daily lives of citizens.”