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| ▲ Health Minister nominee Jeong Eun-kyeong speaks at a parliamentary confirmation hearing at the National Assembly in western Seoul on July 18, 2025. (Yonhap) |
health minister nominee-medical reform
Health minister nominee vows medical reforms 'acceptable' to people, medical community
SEOUL, July 18 (Yonhap) -- Health Minister nominee Jeong Eun-kyeong vowed Friday to pursue medical reforms that can "gain support from both the people and the medical community" amid signs that the prolonged standoff between the government and junior doctors may soon be resolved.
"I will push for people-centered medical reform measures that can secure support from both the people and the medical community in a bid to ensure the sustainability of the national health care system," Jeong said in a parliamentary confirmation hearing.
The government will work to devise ways to stabilize the supply of the medical workforce in public and essential areas, as well as regions outside of Seoul, she added, stressing the need for sufficient compensation and other measures.
Jeong's remarks came amid growing expectations the yearlong walkout by trainee doctors may come to an end in the near future after medical students nationwide decided over the weekend to return to school after a 17-month boycott of classes.
Thousands of trainee doctors have walked off their jobs, while many medical students have been boycotting classes since February 2024 in protest against the government's decision to increase medical school enrollment by 2,000 to nearly 5,000 starting this year.
While the government later reversed course and decided to bring the 2026 quota back to the original level of about 3,000, many trainee doctors have not yet fully returned to hospitals.
Medical students, on the other hand, announced over the weekend that they will soon return to school.
"We will introduce a health care workforce supply and demand estimation committee to conduct scientific projections on the appropriate size of the workforce," Jeong said.
"The policy-making environment for the health care sector has been fundamentally changing amid the economic slowdown, polarization, drastic changes in demographic structures, public and essential health care crises, and the evolution of advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence," she explained.
Jeong said she will also work to address pressing issues South Korea is facing, such as the rising demand for elderly care services sparked by rapid population aging and persistently high rates of elderly poverty and suicide.
A seasoned public health expert, Jeong had spearheaded South Korea's response to the COVID-19 pandemic as the inaugural commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.
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