President Lee: "Appoint as Many SJ Police as Needed for the National Health Insurance Service"

Urges President Chung Ki-seok:
"Make Sure to Crack Down on Illegal Institutions"

President Lee Jae-myung instructed the National Health Insurance Service's Special Judicial Police (SJ Police) to "appoint as many personnel as necessary."

President Lee Jae-myung is speaking at the Ministry of Health and Welfare's briefing held at the Government Sejong Convention Center on the 16th. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

On the 16th, at the Ministry of Health and Welfare and related agencies' briefing held at the Government Sejong Convention Center, President Lee made this remark to Chief Presidential Secretary Kang Hoon-sik.

During the meeting, President Lee asked National Health Insurance Service President Chung Ki-seok, "Aren't there many cases where people are punished for submitting fraudulent medical expense claims?" President Chung replied, "Yes," and added, "Because we do not have SJ Police, investigations take an average of about 11 months after a case is referred to the authorities."

When President Lee further inquired about the required number of SJ Police, President Chung answered, "We need about 40 people." President Lee then instructed, "The Ministry of Justice is not making the appointments, so the Presidential Secretariat should take charge and resolve this issue."

President Lee emphasized, "There have been debates in other ministries as well, but in the case of the Financial Supervisory Service, which is also a private institution, investigative authority was granted. Since the National Health Insurance Service says it needs 40 to 50 people, appoint as many as necessary."

He added, "Make sure to catch a significant number of illegal institutions. If appointments are made but no one is caught, that is unacceptable," and stressed, "It is only natural to conduct investigations."

The SJ Police is a system that grants limited investigative authority to public officials of relevant administrative agencies to enhance the efficiency of investigations in specialized fields. If the National Health Insurance Service introduces SJ Police, the organization will be able to directly investigate illegally established medical institutions (so-called 'office manager hospitals').