Minister Cho Kyu-hong: "Still Sorry to Residents... Resolving Medical Service Gap Is Top Priority"

In Response to Criticism Over "Resident Budget Cuts,"
"If They Return, the Budget Will Be Increased Again"

Health and Welfare Minister Cho Kyu-hong expressed regret over the ongoing conflict between the government and the medical community, which has continued for over a year since the government's announcement of increased medical school admissions in February last year. He also reiterated his apology to the resident doctors who left their hospitals. Regarding the more than 40% reduction in the budget for resident-related projects in the first supplementary budget under the Lee Jaemyung administration, he stated, "If the residents return, the budget can be increased again."

Health and Welfare Minister Kyoohong Cho is speaking at the 3rd National Pension Fund Management Committee meeting for 2025 held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 29th of last month. Photo by Yonhap News

On June 26, during a plenary session of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee, Minister Cho addressed lawmakers' concerns that the budget cut for the 'medical workforce training and appropriate supply management' project was excessive. He said, "We will closely review the situation regarding the return of residents and make adjustments before the final budget is confirmed."

In this supplementary budget proposal, the Ministry of Health and Welfare reduced the budget for the medical workforce training and appropriate supply management project?which is used to improve the training environment for residents and pay training allowances?by 123.5 billion won. The original budget was 299.1 billion won, but it was reduced by about 41% to 175.6 billion won.

In relation to this, the Ministry explained that the reduction was made because a significant number of residents have not returned, and therefore a large portion of the budget would likely go unused. They also noted that the budget could be revised depending on how the situation develops.

Minister Cho stated, "We welcome the fact that some residents who had resigned have expressed their intention to return," and explained, "Their announcements came after the supplementary budget proposal was submitted, so we were unable to reflect them in the proposal." He added, "If additional returns become apparent, we will seek to increase the budget during the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts discussions, and we will do our best to secure the promised budget during the execution process as well."

Regarding the establishment of a medical school in Jeonnam, which President Lee Jaemyung pledged as an election promise, Minister Cho said that discussions are underway at the government level. He stated, "Although we have not yet held separate discussions with the Ministry of Education regarding the establishment of a medical school in Jeonnam, we are preparing a plan to ensure smooth progress," and added, "We are also consulting with the National Policy Planning Committee."

Minister Cho said, "We sincerely apologize to the public, patients, and their families who are experiencing inconvenience due to the medical service gap," and added, "I am very sorry that we have not been able to resolve the medical service gap at an early stage." He also said, "I conveyed my apologies to the residents on September 30 last year, and my feelings have not changed since then," and added, "Resolving the medical service gap is now the top priority, and I will do my utmost to resolve it as quickly as possible while I am in this position."