Doctor Turned YouTuber... Ambassador Promoting Excessive 'Skin Booster' Treatments [Real Loss Insurance Claims Leak]③

Past Rejuade Trend... Recently, Hirasel Popular
Advertising Rampant on YouTube and Blogs
Atopy and Dermatitis Diagnosed, 'Beauty → Treatment' Deception

One of the main culprits behind the deficit in indemnity insurance is non-reimbursable treatments for cosmetic purposes. Recently, a procedure called the so-called 'Skin Booster' has become popular. Skin Boosters are eating away at indemnity insurance through various methods, from injections to device-based procedures and medications.

Just 2 to 3 years ago, Pharma Research's Rejuaid, a wound dressing applied to the skin, was popular as a Skin Booster. The price per 1cc varied greatly from the low 100,000 KRW range to over 200,000 KRW depending on the hospital. At that time, there was a frenzy in dermatology and plastic surgery clinics as everyone tried to obtain Rejuaid supplies. Eventually, the trend ended when Pharma Research stopped selling Rejuaid due to unprofitability.

Recently, Hirasell has been gaining popularity through word of mouth. Unlike existing wound dressings, Hirasell is a hydrogel-type adhesive transparent wound dressing that helps protect and regenerate the skin by adjusting pH (hydrogen ion concentration). Searching 'Hirasell indemnity insurance' on YouTube or blogs reveals numerous videos and posts where dermatologists or hospital consultation managers directly introduce the effects of Hirasell and how to process indemnity claims.

The reporter searched 'Hirasell indemnity insurance' on YouTube and randomly clicked on a video introducing Hirasell by a dermatologist. The doctor, who runs a dermatology clinic in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, explained the effects of Hirasell in the video and emphasized that indemnity claims are possible for treatment purposes. The reporter called the hospital listed below the video. The hospital staff said the price of Hirasell is 200,000 KRW and that they provide the documents needed for submission to the insurance company. They also said most Hirasell users proceed with indemnity insurance. When asked again whether indemnity claims are possible even if used for cosmetic purposes, they confidently replied, "We will assist you with the documents without any problem, so please make a reservation and visit."

With just a little effort, there are many such hospitals in the market. The 'magic' that allows indemnity claims for Hirasell used for cosmetic rather than treatment purposes is performed by doctors. An anonymous informant who used Hirasell about 10 times revealed that they received a false diagnosis of 'atopic dermatitis, unspecified' at the hospital and then underwent Hirasell procedures for cosmetic purposes. The informant said they promised the consultation manager before the procedure that they would issue a receipt with that disease name for submission to the insurance company. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was mainly processed as contact dermatitis caused by mask use. The doctor, informed of these circumstances by the consultation manager, performed the Hirasell procedure without uttering a single word about the atopic symptoms when the informant visited.

A hospital-operated blog is advertising that Hirasel is eligible for indemnity insurance coverage. Blog screenshot

Hospital A located in Seoul encourages patients to pay 2,500,000 KRW at once for a package that allows 10 uses of Hirasell. If paid this way, 2 additional Hirasell sessions are provided as a service. An insurance industry official said, "Since the outpatient indemnity limit is 250,000 KRW, the package was designed so that 2,500,000 KRW is used up over 10 visits," adding, "Hospitals can set non-reimbursable prices arbitrarily, so this kind of excessive treatment does not decrease."

There were also hospitals that falsely issued documents as if patients had received physical therapy or athlete's foot treatment when they purchased skin beauty packages. If a patient purchased a prepaid package worth 10,500,000 KRW, the hospital issued false medical records for 25 sessions of athlete's foot treatment at 200,000 KRW per session (5,000,000 KRW) and 22 sessions of physical therapy at 250,000 KRW per session (5,500,000 KRW). The hospital doctor increased recognition and recruited patients by appearing on multiple broadcasts, running a YouTube channel, and managing an internet fan cafe. Brokers recruited fake patients, claiming that expensive skin beauty treatment costs could be covered by indemnity insurance, and took 20% of the hospital's revenue as commission. Hospital staff also issued false documents. The insurance money they fraudulently obtained amounted to 1 billion KRW. This group was arrested last month through cooperation between the Financial Supervisory Service and Busan Nambu Police Station.