Medical School Expansion After 27 Years... Korean Medical Association Says "Healthcare System Collapse Is an Irreversible Reality"

Medical School Quota for Next Year Confirmed at 4,567
"The Public Must Bear the Aftermath, It's Devastating"

The Korean Medical Association (KMA) on the 24th strongly opposed the Korea Council for University Education's approval of the 2025 university admission plan changes reflecting an increase of 1,509 medical school admissions, stating that "the collapse of the Republic of Korea's medical system has become an irreversible reality."

On the morning of the 10th, when medical school professors nationwide decided to stop working, patients and their guardians were waiting for their turn for medical treatment at a large hospital in Seoul. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

In a statement released that day, the KMA said, "We are appalled by the undemocratic and unilateral government policy implementation, and we are outraged by the Korea Council for University Education's thoughtless confirmation of the university admission plan without careful consideration."

They continued, "If the medical school quota is rapidly expanded without a concrete plan, the medical education field will quickly collapse due to severe confusion and qualitative deterioration, and it is clear that the Republic of Korea's medical system, once praised as world-class, will collapse. The issue of increasing medical school quotas is a serious matter that must be thoroughly reviewed based on objective evidence, considering not only the overall health care system of our country but also national finances, the burden on citizens, the phenomenon of avoidance of science and engineering fields, and other social issues."

The KMA criticized, "Despite strong opposition from the medical community, the government is unilaterally and hastily pushing forward health care policies, which are a national long-term plan, without any communication with the medical community. There was absolutely no reasonable or scientific discussion process or deliberation with experts in this democratic country."

They then questioned, "We want to ask the government whether it truly considers a simple increase in medical school quotas as 'medical reform' without preparing specific measures to attract medical personnel to regional and essential medical fields."

The KMA stated, "In a country with such a government, we doctors, who prioritize the health and lives of the people above all, are left wondering what we should do and what we can do. It is heartbreaking that the public, who have taken the medical system for granted like air, will have to bear all these aftershocks."

Furthermore, they added, "The government's tyranny, which ignored the desperate cries of students, professors, and the entire medical community and ultimately forced through a disastrous increase in medical school admissions, will surely be judged. We clearly state that the only solution is to withdraw the university admission plan now and choose to reconsider the increase in medical school admissions from the beginning."