Seodaemun-gu Public Postpartum Care Center Basic Fee 250,000 Won?

Seodaemun-gu Council Member Hong Jeong-hee, Major Reduction in Public Postpartum Care Center Fees! Ordinance Amendment. Seodaemun-gu Public Postpartum Care Center to Reduce Fees by up to 90% from Next Year... "Policy Important to Prevent Giving Up Childbirth Due to Financial Issues"

Hong Jeong-hee, a member of the Seodaemun District Council (People Power Party, proportional representation), announced that she has amended the related ordinance to significantly reduce the usage fees for the Seodaemun District public postpartum care center, ‘Pumaegadeuk’.

The "Ordinance on the Establishment and Operation of the Seodaemun District Public Postpartum Care Center and Support for Pregnant Women," jointly proposed by Councilmember Hong Jeong-hee (chief proposer) and Councilmember Park Kyung-hee, was finally approved through the 298th extraordinary session.

Seodaemun District opened the public postpartum care center ‘Pumaegadeuk’ in December last year, the first in the northwestern area of Seoul, receiving much attention as well as positive evaluations. In addition, various support measures and infrastructure are continuously being secured at the government-wide level due to the worsening low birthrate problem.

However, it is a fact that the financial burden related to pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare is increasing every year.

Accordingly, Councilmember Hong amended the ordinance to allow for a reduction in the usage fees of the public postpartum care center, aiming to alleviate some of the difficulties residents face during pregnancy and childbirth.

The revised ordinance details the usage fees according to the admission eligibility for the postpartum care center, including priority admission candidates.

According to the details, the current basic fee for the public postpartum care center is 2.5 million KRW for 14 days. Starting from January 2025, when the revised ordinance takes effect, Seodaemun residents will pay 2 million KRW (a 20% discount), and those who have resided in Seodaemun for more than one year will receive up to a 90% discount, paying only 250,000 KRW.

Additionally, mothers who have given birth to their third child or more and have lived in Seodaemun for over a year will be considered priority admission candidates. The ordinance also regulates detailed usage fees such as refund policies and surcharges for multiple births.

Along with this, the application period for pregnancy congratulatory funds has been revised from “within six months from the date of issuance of the pregnancy confirmation certificate” to “until the day before the expected delivery date,” enhancing convenience for residents.

This is expected not only to reduce the economic burden on families giving birth but also to serve as a foundation for local governments to closely monitor the entire process of pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare, and to expand welfare benefits.

Furthermore, continuous efforts will be made to improve satisfaction with the quality of services at the public postpartum care center.

Councilmember Hong Jeong-hee, the chief proposer of the ordinance, stated, “To solve the low birthrate problem our society faces, policies that prevent people from giving up childbirth due to financial reasons are important,” and added, “I will carry out more meticulous legislative activities to subdivide birth promotion policies by life cycle stages from marriage to pregnancy, childbirth, and childcare, and to find ways to reduce economic burdens.”