Promotion of National Health Insurance Coverage for Rehabilitation Services for Young Children with Developmental Delays and Disabilities
"Eliminating Barriers to Mobility and Employment for People with Disabilities"
[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, pledged on the 19th to introduce a ‘personal budget system’ that allows people with disabilities to choose welfare services within a given budget. This system would enable people with disabilities to use vouchers for services such as activity support, purchasing assistive devices, rehabilitation services, education expenses, and transportation costs, allowing them to select and use these services as they wish.
On the same day, Yoon announced disability-related pledges at the People Power Party headquarters. He said, "Like the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany, South Korea will also introduce a ‘personal budget system’ that allows people with disabilities to directly choose the welfare services they want within a given budget," adding, "This is a major shift from provider-centered welfare (government, local governments, welfare centers) to user-centered welfare (people with disabilities)."
He also promised to strengthen national support for infants and toddlers with developmental delays and disabilities. Yoon stated, "We will expand one-stop services where any citizen can receive child development assessments and ‘diagnosis-rehabilitation-education-support’ services in one place when their child has developmental delays during infancy or toddlerhood," and added, "We will actively promote the application of National Health Insurance to rehabilitation services for infants and toddlers with developmental delays and disabilities."
Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, is announcing a policy pledge for safe investment for individual investors in virtual assets at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 19th. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@
Additionally, Yoon’s disability pledges focused on removing barriers related to mobility and employment. First, he said, "We will expand low-floor buses, currently only introduced in city buses, to intercity, express, and metropolitan buses," and "We plan to expand call taxis for people with severe disabilities." Specifically, for call taxis for people with severe disabilities, he pledged to increase the ratio from one call taxi per 150 people with severe disabilities to one per 100 people, and to reduce waiting times by half.
The number of guide dogs provided annually for the visually impaired will be doubled from 15, and technology investment will be expanded to develop and distribute navigation systems that assist safe walking for the visually impaired.
To foster talent for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the two existing digital training centers for people with disabilities will be expanded to all 17 metropolitan cities and provinces nationwide, and a talent development program will be introduced in collaboration with private companies to enable immediate deployment in the field. Additionally, services such as home visits by massage therapists for the visually impaired will be introduced as elderly care services, aiming to discover and expand employment opportunities for people with disabilities.
The pledges also include strengthening arts education for students with disabilities and supporting creative activities of artists with disabilities.
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