Healthcare and Shopping Malls... 'Bidaemyeon Jillyo Platform' Expands Business Areas

Ministry of Health and Welfare Announces Guidelines
Intensifying Competition in Non-Face-to-Face Medical Services

On the 28th of last month, an on-site meeting for the Ministry of Health and Welfare's non-face-to-face medical consultation intermediary platform was held at the Dr. Now headquarters.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] As the resurgence of COVID-19 has become full-fledged with daily confirmed cases exceeding 100,000, non-face-to-face medical platforms are accelerating the advancement of services, including COVID-related responses and business area expansion. Recently, with the Ministry of Health and Welfare releasing the 'Temporary Non-Face-to-Face Medical Brokerage Platform Guidelines,' the institutionalization of non-face-to-face medical care is becoming visible, prompting moves to secure competitiveness.

According to the industry on the 7th, in line with the recent COVID-19 resurgence, various non-face-to-face medical platforms are introducing a large number of new services, including expanded search and medical services as well as health management.

First, the telemedicine platform DoctorNow recently conducted intensive monitoring of partner medical institutions to minimize medical gaps during the vacation season and started expanding services for finding COVID-19 testing centers and medical staff consultations. In particular, to enable one-stop use of COVID-19 related medical services, the COVID-19 testing center search function has been expanded nationwide, and the ‘Ask Anything’ service, which allows consultations with professional medical personnel within 5 minutes, is operated 24 hours a day to provide prompt medical information.

Life Semantics’ non-face-to-face medical platform Dr.Call has obtained approval for an extension of the temporary permit under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s regulatory sandbox for non-face-to-face medical services targeting overseas Koreans. Through this extension, related services can be provided until September 2024. The number of medical consultations for overseas Koreans through Dr.Call has also shown a steady increase, with the number of users rising 185% compared to the same period last year as of July this year.

Ollacare has expanded its business area by opening 'Ollacare Mall,' which sells personalized products based on analysis of non-face-to-face medical data. Ollacare analyzed non-face-to-face medical data collected from the platform launch until now to discover health management insights and composed a product lineup targeting different groups. Users can find various personalized products such as self-examination test kits and cleansers for women, products for hair loss patients, and baby lotion and shampoo & bath items.

NaManuiDoctor also newly launched a 'Health Management' system. This service, released to allow users to handle not only medical consultations but also follow-up care within the app, consists of ‘Health Status,’ which records daily health conditions and shares them with medical staff, and ‘Health Challenge,’ which allows users to create and participate in desired health management methods. Users can record steps, blood sugar, blood pressure, weight, etc., using the ‘Health Status’ feature. With patient consent, this data is provided to doctors during consultations, enabling diagnosis and prescription based on the patient’s health status and symptoms.

Meanwhile, on the 4th, the Ministry of Health and Welfare officially announced the 'Temporary Non-Face-to-Face Medical Brokerage Platform Guidelines.' This is the first government-level guideline related to non-face-to-face medical platforms since non-face-to-face medical care was permitted in February 2020. The guidelines include mandatory obligations and detailed compliance items that the platform industry must follow.