Ministry of Health and Welfare to Implement Birth Notification and Protected Childbirth System from the 19th
Starting from the 19th, the 'Birth Notification System,' which automatically registers the birth of all children born in medical institutions, and the 'Protected Birth System,' which helps pregnant women who find it difficult to raise a child give birth under a pseudonym, will be implemented.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on the 18th that the Birth Notification System, crisis pregnancy support, and the Protected Birth System will be simultaneously implemented from the 19th. The purpose is to prevent cases of unregistered births like the infant death incident in Suwon last June and to introduce a system for the state to protect all children.
The Birth Notification System requires medical institutions to notify the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) within 14 days after birth of the child's birth details, including the mother's name and the date and time of birth. HIRA then notifies the local government. Previously, the birth had to be registered by the person obligated to report it, making it difficult for the state to protect children whose births were not reported. With the implementation of the Birth Notification System, all children born in medical institutions will have their births automatically reported to the city, town, or township, allowing them to be protected within the public system.
Before implementing the system, the government established a framework so that birth information entered into the electronic medical record system at individual hospitals is automatically notified to the family relations registration system. If the birth information has been notified to the local government but the obligated reporter does not register the birth within one month, the local government will send a reminder notice to the reporter to register within seven days. If registration still does not occur, the local government will register the child's birth ex officio with the court's approval.
The government will implement the Protected Birth System alongside the Birth Notification System. This system aims to prevent cases where some pregnant women, reluctant to disclose their pregnancy and childbirth, abandon their children after birth. The Protected Birth System allows pregnant women who face difficulties raising a child due to economic or social reasons to undergo prenatal checkups and childbirth at medical institutions using a pseudonym and a management number (a substitute for the resident registration number), and to notify the birth.
However, since this system should be used as a 'last resort,' the government has established 16 crisis pregnancy counseling centers across 17 cities and provinces nationwide to provide tailored counseling so that pregnant women can choose to raise their children themselves. Even if a child is born through the Protected Birth System, the pregnant woman must spend a reflection period of at least one week or more to directly care for the child.
Additionally, the government has set up a counseling hotline (1308) available 24 hours a day for pregnant women in crisis situations before using the Protected Birth System. When an initial consultation is received, the counseling center prioritizes understanding the needs of the counselor and, if urgent intervention is required, dispatches personnel directly to assist the pregnant woman on-site.
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