After the COVID-19 Pandemic, Foreign Patients Plummeted to One-Third... 146,000 Last Year

490,000 in 2019 → 117,000 in 2020 'Plummets'
Endured quarantine and entered the country after waiting a year for treatment

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The number of foreign patients, which had sharply declined due to international travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, slightly increased last year. However, it still remains less than one-third of the pre-pandemic level.

According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the 26th, thanks to the expansion of COVID-19 vaccinations, the number of foreign patients who visited South Korea last year was 145,842, an increase of 24.6% (28,773 people) compared to the previous year. These patients do not reside in Korea nor are they subscribers or dependents of the National Health Insurance, so they generally enter the country to utilize Korea's excellent medical services and receive treatment.

The number of foreign patients, which was only about 60,000 in 2009, surged to 122,297 in 2011, 211,218 in 2013, and 364,189 in 2016, reaching 497,464 just before the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2019. However, due to restrictions on international travel to prevent COVID-19 infection in 2020, the number of foreign patients visiting Korea sharply dropped to 117,069. Although the number slightly increased in 2021, it was only 29.3% compared to the pre-pandemic period.

Last year, foreign patients from 191 countries visited South Korea. By country, the largest numbers were from the United States (19.8%), China (19.2%), Vietnam (7.4%), Mongolia (6.3%), and Thailand (5.0%). While the number of foreign patients increased from most countries, China (-9.9%) and Japan (-76.5%) saw significant decreases compared to the previous year.

The medical department most visited by foreign patients was integrated internal medicine, accounting for 26.4% of all foreign patients, totaling 47,930 people. This was followed by health check-ups (10.1%), plastic surgery (9.2%), dermatology (6.6%), and orthopedics (5.0%).

Among foreign patients, 32.8% visited general hospitals for treatment, followed by clinics (28.2%) and tertiary hospitals (25.6%). Compared to 2020, the highest growth rate in patient numbers was seen in dental hospitals and clinics (55.1%), followed by general hospitals (50.3%) and tertiary hospitals (26.1%). Additionally, the proportion of foreign patients treated at tertiary and general hospitals was 58.4%, continuing to increase since 2019, whereas clinics accounted for only 28.2%.

Earlier, when attracting foreign patients became difficult due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Health and Welfare operated the 'Medical Fast Track' system in July 2020, allowing severely ill foreign patients to enter the country quickly, reducing visa issuance time from five weeks to one week. Furthermore, in March this year, the ministry established the 'Second Comprehensive Plan for Overseas Medical Expansion and Foreign Patient Attraction,' aiming to reach 500,000 foreign patients by 2026.

Yoon Chan-sik, Director of International Cooperation at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said, "Attracting foreign patients is a high value-added business that not only generates medical revenue but also positively impacts the tourism industry and leads to job creation. As the domestic and international COVID-19 situation stabilizes recently, we will cooperate with related ministries to widely promote the excellence of Korean medical care and provide maximum support to establish Korea as a leading international healthcare country."