Yoon refuses to back down on medical school quota hike
President Yoon Suk Yeol delivers a televised address to the nation on medical reforms at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of presidential office
President Yoon Suk Yeol reaffirmed his determination to expand the admissions quota for medical schools, Monday, urging the public to support the scheme, which he believes is crucial for safeguarding public safety.
However, at the same time, he left room for dialogue, saying doctors should come up with a unified alternative proposal if they want to reduce the number of new slots. This appears to be an effort to address the ruling People Power Party's (PPP) demand for the president to display greater flexibility on the issue, which is impacting support for the ruling bloc ahead of the April 10 general elections.
In a televised 51-minute address to the nation, Yoon outlined his rationale for adding 2,000 new slots and criticized doctors for walking off their jobs for nearly 50 days to protest the government plan.
Addressing the public inconvenience caused by the doctors' strike, Yoon said, “As the president, I regret not being able to promptly address the public inconvenience.”
Yoon devoted most of his speech to explaining the necessity of expanding the medical school quota, citing research results the government used to come up with the number. He emphasized that all of these research studies have arrived at the same conclusion: that the country will face a shortage of at least 10,000 doctors by 2035.
"Adding 2,000 new slots is the minimum expansion meticulously calculated and determined by the government through thorough consideration and based on solid evidence," Yoon said. "All rational people will agree that the country faces a shortage of medical doctors."
Yoon said nearly new 10,000 physicians are receiving their licenses every year in the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan, which are far higher than Korea’s 3,058, even though those countries already have more doctors per capita.
Yoon also noted a number of cases where hospitals in rural areas of Korea experience difficulties in recruiting physicians, and the lengthy period required for training specialists, highlighting the necessity of increasing the number of doctors.
“I once again emphasize that adding 2,000 new slots is imperative to fulfill our constitutional obligation of safeguarding the lives and safety of our citizens, as well as to address the pressing need to adapt to the rapid aging of our population,” Yoon said.
To counter doctors' claims that the government did not engage in talks when determining the new quota, Yoon provided details of past discussions between medical associations. He said the government had repeatedly inquired about the appropriate scale of expansion, but the medical community had proposed random numbers without proper justification.
“If the medical community intends to advocate for reducing the number of new slots, they should present a unified plan to the government backed by clear scientific evidence, rather than resorting to collective action,” Yoon said. “If they present more rational and valid ideas, they are more than welcome to engage in discussions.”
President Yoon Suk Yeol bows after delivering his address to the nation at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Monday. Courtesy of presidential office
‘Not about politics’
The address came amid growing calls from the PPP for the president to demonstrate more flexibility regarding the 2,000 slots, putting Yoon's commitment to medical reform to the test.
In February, surveys indicated public support for Yoon's initiative. But the trend has reversed in recent weeks, as the prolonged standoff between the government and doctors has led to significant setbacks in large hospitals, with no signs of resolution.
According to a poll by Realmeter released on Monday, Yoon's job approval rating slipped by 0.2 percentage point to 36.3 percent last week, marking the fifth consecutive week of decline. Correspondingly, the support rate for the PPP stood at 35.4 percent, trailing behind the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, which garnered 43.1 percent. These figures fall outside the survey's margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Against this backdrop, a growing number of PPP candidates and the party leadership have voiced concerns that Yoon should not be fixated on the issue of the 2,000 slots.
Regarding Yoon’s address, PPP interim leader Han Dong-hoon said, “The public agrees that the number of medical doctors should increase, but at the same time they want the current standoff to be addressed quickly … This is not an issue that should be swayed by numbers.” PPP Rep. Cho Hae-jin even urged Yoon on Sunday to apologize and reshuffle his entire Cabinet.
People Power Party interim leader Han Dong-hoon speaks while canvassing in Yeonje District, Busan, Monday. Yonhap
Despite the calls, Yoon said in the address that he does not consider political gains or losses in his push for the medical school quota hike.
“All of the previous governments left this issue unattended due to political considerations, worsening the situation to that of today, and I believe this is a crisis to the democracy,” Yoon said. “Through medical reforms, I will establish a properly functioning medical system … If (doctors) want to resort to collective action, do it when I don’t keep my promise.”
Yoon resorted to strong rhetoric throughout the speech to emphasize the necessity of the quota hike, but the presidential office asserts that the key message of his address was the government's willingness to engage in dialogue if doctors present a unified and rational proposal on the number of slots.
A source at the presidential office said the key point of Yoon’s speech was his expression of regret for public inconvenience, and emphasized that the plan for 2,000 slots can be modified if doctors propose more valid and rational ideas.
The Realmeter poll on the president surveyed 2,509 voters from March 25 to 29. The survey on general elections interviewed 1,004 voters from March 28 to 29. The polls were commissioned by the Energy Economy News Daily, and further details are available on the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission’s website.