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CEO & Publisher: Oh Young-jinDigital News Email: webmaster@koreatimes.co.krTel: 02-724-2114Online newspaper registration No: 서울,아52844Date of registration: 2020.02.05Masthead: The Korea TimesCopyright © koreatimes.co.kr. All rights reserved.

Smoking while driving increases risk of accident?

By Kim Hyun-binA lawmaker's recent proposal to ban smoking while driving is causing controversy. Supporters say it will prevent drivers from being distracted while smokers claim it will infringe on their rights.Under the traffic law, the use of cellphones or watching programs on digital multimedia while driving are banned because they are distractions.Liberty Korea Party lawmaker Bak Maeng-woo proposed the revision bill to fine drivers up to 200,000 won if they smoke while driving, claiming that getting a cigarette and lighting it also hinders a driver's focus.“Banning smoking while driving will enhance traffic safety and prevent second-hand smoking damage,” Bak said. “We are pushing to set the regulation for the safety of the public.”Some experts say lighting a cigarette and the smoke from it can hinder a driver's view, which could lead to an accident. There also have been cases where cigarette butts thrown from cars have caused accidents for vehicles traveling in their wake.In 2004, a lit cigarette butt fell inside a truck and the panicked driver crossed ove

Sep 7, 2018By Kim Hyun-bin
Smoking while driving increases risk of accident?

Food poisoning in school meal

A middle school cafeteria in North Jeolla Province is closed at lunchtime, Thursday, after symptoms of food poisoning were reported nationwide. Over 460 students from 13 schools around the country have exhibited symptoms after consuming chocolate cake manufactured by a small cake making company and distributed by Pulmuone Foodmerce. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety ordered Pulmuone to halt distribution. / Yonhap

Sep 6, 2018
Food poisoning in school meal

Opposition dominates gov't plan to slap health promotion tax on alcohol

By Kim Hyun-binOpposition is growing over a government plan to slap public health promotion taxes on alcoholic products in an effort to expand national health insurance funds as alcohol-related diseases are covered by insurance.More people appear skeptical about whether the tax will help enhance public health and increase insurance funds, believing the measure will only raise the price of alcoholic beverages.Last month, the National Health Insurance Corp. (NHIC) brainstormed ideas to better expand the insurance fund to minimize insurance premium hikes.Placing public health promotion taxes on alcoholic products was one of the ideas raised at the meeting. Currently, cigarettes are taxed 841 won ($.75) for each pack as a public health promotion fee. The fee is a kind of “sin tax” because national health insurance covers treatments of patients with smoking-related diseases.Some experts say alcohol, just like cigarettes, needs to be subject to public health promotion taxes because alcohol is a source of many diseases that should be covered by the insurance and the taxes will b

Sep 4, 2018
Opposition dominates gov't plan to slap health promotion tax on alcohol

Gov't desperate to raise historic low birthrate

The government seeks to provide benefits for households with more than two children to spur the country's low birthrate. Graphics by Cho Sang-wonBy Kim Hyun-binThe government is seeking to provide benefits to encourage families to have more children.Currently there are benefits for families who have three or more children, but the government is seeking to provide equal benefits for households with more than two children as a desperate countermeasure to raise the country's low birthrate.In October, the Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy is scheduled to release its third low-birthrate restructuring plan.Under the new plan, it is expected to include households with two children into the benefits package.The benefits include being first in line for apartment applications, better loan opportunities, reduction in the vehicle acquisition tax, state university scholarships, reductions in electricity and gas bills, and discounts for public transportation.However, there are only 510,000 households in the country accounting for less than 10 percent of families having

Sep 4, 2018

Court rules DNA collection procedure unconstitutional

By Lee Suh-yoonThe Constitutional Court ruled Tuesday that the current system of collecting personal genetic information for police investigations and record-keeping is unconstitutional. In a 6-3 decision, the nine-member panel ruled that it was unacceptable for law enforcement authorities to unilaterally collect DNA samples from suspects without giving them an opportunity to object.The ruling reflects concerns from civic groups that claimed DNA collection is carried out in a biased manner, with police enforcing it mostly on those in weak social positions, such as labor union members or evicted residents.Currently, law enforcement authorities can collect DNA samples of convicted persons or detained suspects _ usually from their blood, saliva, or hair _ after obtaining a warrant from a local court. In that process, the persons are not given the opportunity to formally reject the request. The collected information is then permanently stored in the police database. The case was brought to court by a street vendors' association and a metal workers' union. Both groups claimed their member

Sep 4, 2018
Court rules DNA collection procedure unconstitutional

People warned over 'toxic' toy slime

Liquid slime with beads. Captured from YouTube Channel “Soovely”By Jung Hae-myoung More than 113 Slime Cafes are running in South Korea. Slime became popular among adults with its soft and squashy texture ― but watch out because it may be toxic and hazardous, especially children. Slime from 14 out of 49 manufacturers was found to contain toxic chemical compounds, according the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS). The slime contains borates that may stunt children's growth. Children who play with it may have allergic reactions in their eyes and/or on their skin. Only nine companies have received a safety rating from KATS. Experts suggest that the slime should be solidified before being thrown away.Varieties of slime have evolved since the 1990s and now come in creative designs with a range of embellishments and beads. People buy colorful parts to make their own special slime at home.Some outlets will not sell to children under 14.

Sep 4, 2018
People warned over 'toxic' toy slime
  • Playing with slime can be a comforting experience

Pyeongtaek signs on for 'Well-dying program'

YonhapBy Jung Hae-myoung Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, will support a “Well-dying program” in private hospices.Under a plan announced Sunday, the city will provide funding for the hospices, while gathering professionals, NGO and welfare center officials to discuss the details. The demand for such a program has been increasing. The related law was passed on July 2017 and took effect from 2018.Seoul's five big hospitals, including Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, Yonsei University Severance Hospital, are already taking part in such a program.The law is aimed at providing terminal patients with death with dignity. The patient can sign on in advance.

Sep 3, 2018
Pyeongtaek signs on for 'Well-dying program'

Abortion crackdown leaves women on edge

Women hold up abortion pill boxes in front of Bosingak, a pavillion at Jongno, downtown Seoul on Aug. 26. 125 women — roughly the number of women who get an abortion every hour in South Korea — gathered to give a Mifegyne-swallowing performance using vitamin pills. / YonhapBy Lee Suh-yoonWomen's health is being placed at greater risk in the recent row between the government and OB-GYN doctors over a new regulation that suspends medical licenses for performing abortions — explicitly branding the procedure as “immoral.” On Aug. 17, some 2,500 OB-GYN doctors in the country announced they would boycott all abortions, signaling a new low point in the growing discontent at the nation's 65-year-old abortion ban.Abortion is banned in Korea by criminal law. Unlike neighboring Japan, where the abortion ban can be overruled for socioeconomic reasons, abortions are only allowed here in cases of rape, high chances of birth defects, or significant health risks for the woman.Despite the illegality, abortions are widely carried out — a recent s

Sep 2, 2018
Abortion crackdown leaves women on edge
  • Voices growing against abortion ban
  • Korean doctors threaten to boycott abortions
  • Constitutional Court to rule on anti-abortion law (ruling from 2 p.m.)

Raw seafood warning: Vibrio infection kills eight

Vibrio vulnificus septicemia is often contracted by eating raw seafood. YonhapBy Jung Hae-myoung Eight people have died this year from vibrio infections while 28 became ill and required hospital treatment.Thirteen people were infected last year.The infection, caused by an organism that inhabits coastal waters, occurs mostly in August and September. Vibrio vulnificus septicemia can result from eating raw or undercooked seafood, especially in people who have compromised immune systems or liver disease. About 76 percent of cases last year resulted from eating seafood, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDP). The infection remains dormant for three days before fever, diarrhea and a decrease in blood pressure set in. It has a fatality rate of 50 percent.The KCDP urged people to eat cooked seafood and avoid going into the ocean if they have an open wound.

Aug 30, 2018
Raw seafood warning: Vibrio infection kills eight

Korean doctors threaten to boycott abortions

Korea's OB/GYN doctors Tuesday declared they will boycott abortion procedures in protest against the government's regulatory change that subjects doctors to one-month suspension of license for conducting the procedures. YonhapBy Oh Young-jin OB/GYN doctors Tuesday threatened to stop performing abortions.Their threat came in response to the Aug. 18 regulatory change that suspends a doctor's license for a month if he or she performs an abortion."We refuse to perform abortions at the risk of being branded as immoral medical practitioners and getting our license suspended for a month," the association of OB/GYN doctors said at a news conference. "We are not seeking to abolish an abortion ban but we want to see the new regulation put on hold until a social consensus is achieved." If the threat is put into practice, it would create confusion over what is a legal or illegal abortion. The Mother and Child Health Act allows abortion for such cases as pregnancy from rape and incest or for genetic impairment of the fetus, among others, but makes it illegal after the first 24 weeks of pregnancy.

Aug 28, 2018
Korean doctors threaten to boycott abortions
  • Abortion crackdown leaves women on edge
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