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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.

People with HIV suffer discrimination by doctors

Members of the Korean Network for People Living with HIV during a workshop/ Courtesy of Son Moon-suBy Kim Se-jeong Son Moon-su tested positive for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) 20 years ago after having sex with a man.He chose not to tell his mother and sister ― he lost his father much earlier ― but soon they got to know about it because a local doctor stopped by to check on him at home.He is now living alone in Seoul and works for the Korean Network for People Living with HIV, a human rights group for HIV-infected people. His mother passed away four years ago and he hasn’t seen his sister since.He visits the National Medical Center (NMC) for an HIV medication prescription every three months ― the NMC is one of the main facilities for HIV and AIDS patients. When he has other medical problems, he also turns to the NMC, instead of going to a local clinic.“In 2007, I went to see a dentist. He was about to begin working on my teeth, but when I told him about my condition, he stopped the procedure and recommended I to go to a bigger hospital,&rdqu

Jun 21, 2017
People with HIV suffer discrimination by doctors

Asylum seekers struggling to start new lives

Asylum seekers from Ethiopia urge the Korean government to revamp its refugee policies during a protest in front of the National Assembly in Seoul, Tuesday, which was World Refugee Day. /YonhapRefugee status is most important but hardest problem to solveBy Kim Se-jeong Back in Egypt, Yasser worked as a photographer for a local NGO which waged anti-government campaigns.  Last year, amid a mounting crackdown on his colleagues, he and his wife fled their home country.“Our life in Egypt was not bad, but the government began cracking down on NGOs and apprehending my colleagues, so I had to flee,” Yasser ― who refused to disclose his real name for the article ― told News1, a local internet news site in Korea. “We were ready to go anywhere where we would be welcomed. I heard the situation in Europe wasn’t so good, so I decided to come to South Korea.”Upon arrival, Yasser submitted a refugee application but their first interview was unsuccessful. They are now awaiting the second round of interviews.“There are many Egyptians who are here

Jun 20, 2017
Asylum seekers struggling to start new lives

Obesity surgery to be covered by National Health Insurance

 By Lee Kyung-min Highly obese patients who opt for surgery will be covered by the National Health Insurance, the government said Sunday.According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Health Insurance Service, starting next year, the surgery costs for lap-band, gastric resection and Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass will be covered for those who fall under the category of “obese” under the Body Mass Index (BMI). About 9 billion won ($7.9 million) will be spent yearly.  The measurement of body fat based on height and weight that applies to adult men and women categorizes people into four groups: underweight if the number is smaller than 18.5, normal if the number is between 18.5 and 24.9, overweight (25–29.9) and obese if it is 30 or greater.The ministry said the measure comes as obesity is a disease that entails high risks of complications such as diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases.According to a 2011 study by the National Evidence-based Healthcare Collaborating Agency, despite the high cost, surgical treatment was more

Jun 18, 2017

Woman dies from tick-borne virus in Gangwon

By Kim Bo-eunThe Gangwon Provincial government said Saturday a woman in Inje County died from a tick-borne virus last week.The woman, 61, who tested positive for Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (SFTS), died while receiving hospital treatment, Wednesday.This is the first death from SFTS in Gangwon Province this year. The woman was among two people who tested positive for the virus in Gangwon, along with a person in Hwacheon County.The woman suffered symptoms such as a stomachache after working outdoors on her farm and removing and killing an insect on her dog on June 11.A dead tick was found on her right arm as well as two sores which were suspected to be tick bites.The woman tested positive to SFTS on June 12.It is the third death from SFTS nationwide following two on Jeju Island.In April, a 64-year-old woman on Jeju Island who engaged in bee keeping tested positive to SFTS and died while receiving hospital treatment.Another woman, 79, died in Jeju after testing positive to SFTS in March. The woman lost consciousness after collecting wild herbs outdoors.SFTS infections us

Jun 18, 2017

S. Korea's chicken exports virtually suspended amid bird flu spread

The export of South Korean chickens has effectively come to a halt this year, apparently hit by the spread of avian influenza (AI), government data showed Saturday.The outbound shipment of chickens reached only 139 tons between January and May, down 98.8 percent on-year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.It means the country's chicken exports have virtually been suspended.The value of total exports over the five months plunged 97.6 percent to US$300,000, from $12.67 million a year earlier, added the ministry.The government has been grappling with a fresh outbreak of AI since early this month. It culled 185,000 chickens as part of containment measures.The sharp drop in chicken exports came as Vietnam and Hong Kong, the two biggest buyers of the local meat, put a ban on the import of Korean chickens following the reports of a bird flu outbreak.The value of Vietnam-bound shipment of local chickens plunged 99 percent to $110,000 from $110.2 million, while the corresponding figure from Hong Kong tumbled 95.5 percent to $55,000 from $1.22 million during the c

Jun 17, 2017
S. Korea's chicken exports virtually suspended amid bird flu spread

S. Korea confirms another Zika virus patient

South Korean health authorities said Sunday it confirmed another case of the Zika virus found in a woman who traveled to Thailand.It has raised the official number of infected patients in South Korea to 21.A 31-year-old, whose name was withheld, tested positive for the mosquito-borne virus by a local health agency in South Jeolla Province on Thursday, after she had a fever and other symptoms, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KDCD).The virus, first discovered in Africa, is not life-threatening but may be linked to birth defects in newborns like abnormally small heads and improperly developed brains.The woman reportedly came back on June 10 after visiting the Southeast Asian country. She said she started having symptoms the next day.The new infection case comes about two weeks after the health authorities reported a 33-year-old woman as a confirmed Zika virus patient on June 2. She went on a trip to the Maldives. The authorities said they are examining three others who traveled with the newly infected patient. (Yonhap)

Jun 17, 2017
S. Korea confirms another Zika virus patient

Skin cancer cases soar some 40% over 4 years

The number of South Korean skin cancer patients has spiked nearly 40 percent over the past four years, flirting with the 20,000 mark, apparently due to increased sunlight exposure, data showed Tuesday.Skin cancer patients in the country numbered 19,435 at the end of last year, up 38 percent from four years earlier, according to the data from the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service.People in their 70s accounted for the largest portion of the total at 28 percent, trailed by sexagenarians with 21.6 percent and those aged 80 or older with 21.3 percent. Women numbered 10,566.Skin cancer, an abnormal growth of skin cells, occurs mainly because of excessive exposure to sunlight, especially ultraviolet rays, affecting people of all races.South Korea has produced no research that determines the exact cause of an increase in skin cancer patients in the country, but local doctors say the probable cause may be greater exposure to ultraviolet rays due to increased leisure activity."Skin cancer occurs due largely to exposure to ultraviolet rays," the service said. "Given that, it is i

Jun 13, 2017
Skin cancer cases soar some 40% over 4 years

Gov't imposes nationwide ban on trade of live birds to fight bird flu

A poultry cage at Moran Market in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province is empty, Monday, after the government banned the trade of live birds the same day, in an effort to prevent the spread of bird flu. / YonhapBy Kim Bo-eunThe Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs banned the trade of live poultry from midnight Sunday as part of steps to curb the spread of bird flu. The ban will last until June 25.The measure came as the avian influenza outbreak is spreading to small farms through intermediary vendors.It follows a trade ban which went into effect June 5 at traditional markets and restaurants that raise their own birds.The trade of live birds will be allowed in cases where the birds pass clinical tests by the disease prevention authorities.Infections of the highly pathogenic H5N8 strain have been confirmed in 21 locations nationwide as of Monday. They are six farms on Jeju; two in Gijang County of Busan; two in Gunsan, three in Iksan, one each in Wanju, Jeonju and Imsil in North Jeolla Province; one in Paju, Gyeonggi Province; one in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province; and three in t

Jun 12, 2017
Gov't imposes nationwide ban on trade of live birds to fight bird flu

27 elderly people go missing every day

By Jung Min-hoAn increasing number of elderly people are going missing in Korea ― a worrying trend for the fast-aging society.According to the National Police Agency, Monday, 9,869 dementia sufferers went missing in 2016. In other words, 27 people now go missing every day.Some turn up dead, or not at all.The number of missing elderly people has been increasing at an alarming pace over the past few years. From 7,650 in 2012, it jumped by nearly 30 percent in just five years.An 84-year-old woman with dementia was found dead last week near a stream, which was 500 meters from her house in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province.A police officer said dementia sufferers are often found in places that are least expected. “Some people seem just fine, but they could suddenly disappear when symptoms occur,” he said.Dementia, which causes a long term and gradual decrease in cognitive abilities due largely to aging, has become a major concern for the country.The National Institute of Dementia in Korea estimated in 2015 that nearly 650,000 people suffer from the disease and the number wi

Jun 12, 2017
27 elderly people go missing every day

Statue to remember murdered Korean adoptee in US

Thomas Park Clement holds the hand of a statue that depicts a little boy letting go of a butterfly. The statue, “Hyunsu’s Butterfly,” is named after Hyunsu O’Callaghan, a Korean American adoptee murdered by his adoptive father just four months after being adopted. / Courtesy of Chosun IlboBy You Soo-sunCompany CEO and Korean American adoptee dedicated matching statues to schools in Korea and the United States in memory of Hyunsu, a Korean boy murdered by his adoptive father. Thomas Park Clement, once an orphan from the Korean War, built the statues with the cooperation of Hyunsu’s Legacy of Hope, an association formed to commemorate his passing, in dedication of all Korean adoptees and abused children whose lives were taken by murder, illness, and suicide.The bronze statue, titled “Hyunsu’s Butteryfly,” depicts a boy letting go of a butterfly with wings spread out ― the boy represents Hyunsu as a little boy prior to his death, while the butterfly symbolizes Hyunsu after his death.“He metamorphosed, grew wings as an angel and

Jun 11, 2017
Statue to remember murdered Korean adoptee in US
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