The Korean Medical Association Begins Voting on Government Struggle and Collective Action for All Members

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Korean Medical Association (KMA) has started a vote among all its members regarding government opposition and collective action.

From today until the 7th, the KMA will conduct an online vote among all members to confirm the consensus of members ahead of full-scale protests. This vote is intended to gauge the support of physician members for collective action centered around the KMA and to determine whether they will participate in protests, including work stoppages.

The KMA announced the start of the vote while criticizing the government's announcement to withdraw the order prohibiting the acceptance of resignation letters from training hospital directors, stating, "As expected, the government has caused a medical and educational crisis without any countermeasures."

Furthermore, the KMA stated, "The government has revealed to the public that it lacks both the ability and the will to normalize healthcare," and questioned, "How can residents trust and return to hospitals when the irresponsible government insists only on increasing 2,000 positions and shifts the responsibility for the medical crisis onto each hospital?"

Meanwhile, KMA President Lim Hyun-taek has warned that a "major battle" will be launched as previously announced.

Meanwhile, after collecting members' opinions through the vote, the KMA plans to hold a National Medical Representatives Conference at the KMA headquarters at 2 p.m. on the 9th to discuss specific response measures. At the National Medical Representatives Conference, the KMA plans to declare government opposition led by the KMA, involving professors, employed physicians, private practitioners, as well as residents and medical students.