Telemedicine services to be expanded on Dec. 15 despite safety concerns

Second Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Park Min-soo announces the supplementary plan on expanding telemedicine services at the Government Complex in Seoul, Friday. Yonhap

The government is set to expand the eligibility for its telemedicine services, a non-face-to-face medical service option, starting Dec. 15, despite lingering concerns by medical professionals over the potential for misdiagnosis and proxy treatments.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced, Friday, that it plans to augment the telemedicine pilot project by expanding coverage areas and time spans under which one can receive telemedicine services.

Telemedicine services, which are technically illegal under the current Medical Services Act, have been temporarily allowed in Korea since 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pilot project commenced in June this year after the government lowered the COVID-19 threat level.

Under the existing pilot program, only returning patients were permitted to use non-face-to-face treatments, limited to those who had received in-person treatment for the same ailment within a certain time period.

As an exceptional measure, the program restrictively allowed telemedicine services for first-time patients if they lived on islands or mountain areas.

In a bid to improve medical services accessibility, the supplementary plan will considerably expand the areas to which this exception applies, adding 98 cities and counties. This covers nearly 40 percent of all the cities and counties in the country.

In addition, first-time patients — across all age groups — can receive telemedicine services, including counseling and prescriptions, after 6 p.m. on weekdays and from 1 p.m. on Saturdays. These services are also available on holidays.

Previously, only first-time patients under 18 could access non-face-to-face counseling services at night or during the holidays, and prescription medication was not allowed. This limitation drew criticism, as traditional hospitals are often closed during holidays and at night.

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The plan to expand eligibility for telemedicine services for first-time patients is drawing backlash from doctors and pharmacists who raise concerns over the inability of telemedicine to guarantee patient safety due to possible limitations in accurately diagnosing patients and prescribing suitable medication.

The Korean Medical Association on Friday, criticized the measure as prioritizing convenience over improving the quality of medical care and that it was not safeguarding a patient's right to health.

On the same day, the Korean Pharmaceutical Association called on the government to retract its decision, highlighting the unilateral push forward despite opposition from many experts.

Mindful of the opposition of doctors, the health ministry decided to specify the doctor's "right to demand in-person consultations" in the guidelines for non-face-to-face treatments.

This clarification emphasizes that if a doctor, based on a medical judgment, decides that a patient is unsuitable for remote treatment, this does not constitute a refusal of medical care under health care laws.

“This supplementary plan aims to enhance public convenience and safety, establishing suitable medical models and grounds for implementation through pilot projects in preparation for the institutionalization of telemedicine service,” said Park Min-soo, the second vice minister of health and welfare.