How Much Will Medical School Quotas Increase... Today’s 'Round 2' Between Government and Medical Association

Medical Issue Consultative Body
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The 'second round' of discussions between the government and the medical community over the issue of expanding medical school quotas continues on the 15th. The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korean Medical Association (KMA) reached a consensus during the medical school quota negotiations held on the 8th, the first in two years and nine months since September 2020, agreeing to increase the medical school quotas starting from the 2025 admissions. However, their positions still differ on the extent of the quota increase.

On the same day at 2 p.m., the Ministry and the KMA will hold the 11th Medical Issues Consultative Body meeting at Conference House Dalgaebi in Jung-gu, Seoul, to discuss the expansion of medical school quotas and related issues. This is the second discussion on increasing the number of medical personnel following the 10th meeting held on the 8th. Attendees from the government side include Lee Hyung-hoon, Director of Health and Medical Policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and about ten representatives from the KMA, including Vice President Park Jin-gyu.

At the previous 10th meeting, both sides agreed to expand medical school quotas starting from the 2025 admissions. However, they disagreed on the scale of the increase. The government argues that since the medical school quota has been frozen at 3,058 students for 18 years since 2006, it should be increased by at least 300 to 500 students annually. The Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, a national research institute for health and medical policy, predicted at the end of last year that by 2035, the total number of doctors will fall short by 27,232 compared to demand.

The KMA is likely to argue for a smaller increase in medical school quotas than the government’s proposal. They have protested that the government’s medical workforce supply and demand estimates differ from those of the KMA. Moreover, some medical organizations such as the Gyeonggi-do Medical Association and the National Doctors’ Coalition have raised concerns about the expansion of medical school quotas itself, which also poses a burden for the KMA.

The Ministry and the KMA plan to hold an expert forum on medical workforce supply and demand at the end of this month, involving experts from the medical community. Since the expert forum will influence the specific scale of the medical school quota expansion, the consultative body will discuss which experts to invite.

However, difficulties are expected. A medical community official said, “If the Ministry tries to invite health and medical experts who have maintained the position that medical school quotas should be significantly increased, the medical community will oppose it or, in response, present experts aligned with the KMA’s position.” He added, “A tense tug-of-war between the government and the KMA is expected until early next year when the medical school quotas will be finalized in the 2025 admissions guidelines.”