A public funding program was launched for clinics that wish to expand the reception of foreign patients. But local people fear that the expansion of for-profit private companies on the island, targeting especially Chinese patients, will affect public health and increase the cost of medical treatment.
Seoul () – The South Korean Ministry of Health has selected some locations in the country for the allocation of funds that should encourage what is called health tourism. South Korea is not yet among the most popular destinations globally, but the government initiative aims to support a sector with strong growth potentialespecially in Asia.
After the outbreak of the pandemic and the efficient management of the virus, South Korea has tried to present itself to the world as a country with a quality and affordable health service. That is why last year the government launched a public financing program for clinics that wish to expand the reception of patients from abroad.
The subtropical island of Jeju is one of those that won the bid this year. Jeju is a special autonomous province and introduced a project in which health treatments are complemented by the island’s natural environment. “We are developing a unique model of health and wellness on the island,” said Kang Dong-won, head of the provincial health department, who supports the policy of the health care industry as the driver of the local economy.
Public funds, worth 200 million won (more than 140,000 euros), will go to expand the capacity to attract and receive foreign tourists in Jeju health centers. The provincial government also explained that it wants to foster a rapprochement between the island’s main clinics and tourism agencies, in order to better promote the health treatments offered by local institutions among potential foreign patients.
However, the project might not be so easy to implement. In recent years, in fact, the opposition from the local population of Jeju, which has shown some intolerance towards private clinics. Various groups of activists and citizens have repeatedly expressed their opposition to the expansion of for-profit private clinics on the island, fearing that increased competition from these hospitals could harm public health and increase the costs of medical treatment. .
The story of Jeju’s Greenland International Hospital is an example of the difficulties the government might encounter in promoting health tourism. In 2015 the Greenland Group, a Shanghai real estate group, began the construction of a health center on the island to take advantage of the growing flow of Chinese tourists for medical purposes. However, when it was due to be granted its license in 2018, the Jeju authorities wavered over citizens’ fears, granting it on the condition that the clinic would only treat foreign and non-South Korean patients. A long legal battle then began, in which the Chinese group prevailed last year. But the damage had been done, and the Greenland had liquidated a large part of the partnership that was to run the hospital.
In South Korea, almost all hospital centers are private, but by law they are not allowed to record any profit, which must be invested in the center itself. However, Jeju is one of the few places where foreign investors can open a clinic and pocket the profits from the health treatments they offer to patients.
