[Lee Administration's First Budget] 137 Trillion Won for Health and Welfare... Expansion of Regional, Essential, and Public Healthcare

Welfare Ministry Budget to Rise 9.7% Next Year, Reaching 18.9% of Total Government Spending
Enhanced Support for Basic Livelihood, Medical Assistance, Low Birth Rate, and Elderly Care
Resident Support Budget Halved, Focus Shifts to Improving Training Environment
Biohealth R&D Budget Surpasses 1 Trillion Won for the First Time

The Ministry of Health and Welfare's budget, including next year's funds, is expected to reach a record high of 137 trillion won, nearly a 10% increase compared to this year.

On August 29, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced that its budget for the 2026 government budget proposal has been set at 137.648 trillion won. This represents an increase of 9.7% (12.2 trillion won) from this year's 125.4909 trillion won.

The growth rate of the Ministry of Health and Welfare's budget exceeds the overall government budget increase of 8.1%. Of the total government budget increase of 54.7 trillion won, more than 20% is accounted for by the ministry's budget increase. The proportion of the ministry's budget within the total government budget will also rise from 18.6% this year to 18.9% next year.

Minister of Health and Welfare Chung Eun-kyung explained, "The 2026 budget proposal focuses on strengthening the social safety net for the basic livelihood of the people and expanding regional, essential, and public healthcare to protect public health."

First, the budget related to public pensions, which is increasing in line with the growing elderly population, amounts to 55.5189 trillion won, accounting for 40.3% of the ministry's total budget. This is an increase of 12.5% (6.1757 trillion won) from this year's 49.3432 trillion won, and it represents more than half (50.8%) of the ministry's total budget increase.

Looking at the detailed budget items, funding for addressing low birth rates and elderly care will also see significant increases next year. The budget for elderly-related programs will rise by 6.8% (1.8748 trillion won) to 29.3161 trillion won, while the budget for child and childcare programs will increase by 16.9% (885.1 billion won) to 6.1149 trillion won compared to the previous year.

To alleviate poverty among low-income groups, the standard median income will be raised by a record 6.51%, and the basic living allowance for a four-person household will be increased by up to 127,000 won per month, or 1.53 million won annually. When selecting recipients for medical assistance, the ministry will abolish the dependent support requirement and plans to provide support for nursing hospital care costs.

In the healthcare sector, the focus will be on reducing regional disparities in medical services and expanding essential and public healthcare. Support for essential medical services in areas such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and maternal and child health will be strengthened, and a new loan program worth 100 billion won will be established for emergency medical institutions.

Due to the prolonged conflict between medical professionals and the government in the first half of this year, the budget for supporting medical residents will be nearly halved from 276.8 billion won this year to 146.1 billion won next year to address the resulting gaps. Instead, support for liability insurance premiums for residents in essential specialties-such as obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, internal medicine, surgery, emergency medicine, thoracic surgery, and neurosurgery-will increase from 5 billion won this year to 8.2 billion won next year.

Investment in suicide prevention and mental health will be significantly expanded, and the budget for mental health promotion projects-including support for treatment costs for drug addicts and expanding staff at integrated addiction management support centers-will increase by 5.9 billion won to 137.7 billion won compared to this year.

In addition, the research and development (R&D) budget to strengthen the global competitiveness of the biohealth industry will exceed 1 trillion won for the first time, rising by 13.9% from last year to 1.1232 trillion won. For the K-Bio Vaccine Fund, clinical phase 3 specialized funds, and to promote investment in the pharmaceutical industry and strengthen supply chains, 119.4 billion won will be allocated, which is more than six times the amount allocated this year.