Government: "The State Will Cover COVID-19 Vaccine Side Effects"... Establishing a Compensation System for Damages

Ministry of Economy and Finance Announces 2021 Work Plan on the 19th

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The Ministry of Economy and Finance has stated that the government will fully compensate for any side effects caused by the COVID-19 vaccine.

On the 18th, Kim Yong-beom, the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Economy and Finance, said at the '2021 Work Plan Pre-Briefing' held at the Government Complex Sejong, "We will establish a joint monitoring system with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety to monitor the possibility of adverse reactions. We plan to build a rapid response and compensation system for investigating and evaluating the causal relationship between the vaccine and adverse reactions through intergovernmental cooperation, as well as for deciding on vaccine sealing and continuation of vaccination."

Along with this, the Ministry of Economy and Finance will invest about 130 billion won to support clinical trials of COVID-19 treatments and vaccines, aiding the development of domestic treatments and vaccines.

Meanwhile, the government also announced that it will provide free vaccinations starting in February with 56 million doses of vaccines secured in advance.

The Ministry of Economy and Finance is considering covering the increased budget required due to the expansion of vaccine doses from the initial 44 million to 56 million through contingency funds, while also exploring the use of some health insurance finances for the free vaccination budget.