Ministry of Health and Welfare Expands Dedicated Organization for Integrated Care... Launches Department of Pharmaceutical and Bioindustry

Temporary Integrated Support Team Upgraded to Director-General for Integrated Care Support
Ambitious Goal to Become a Global Powerhouse in Pharmaceuticals and Biohealth

The Ministry of Health and Welfare has established dedicated new departments ahead of the nationwide implementation of integrated care in March next year. To realize its goal of becoming a global powerhouse in pharmaceuticals and biohealth, the ministry has created the Department of Pharmaceutical and Bioindustry. It has also set up the Department of Disaster Medical Policy, which will serve as a control tower for the healthcare sector in the event of a national disaster.

According to the ministry on December 30, in line with the enforcement of the "Act on Integrated Support for Community-Based Care Including Medical and Long-Term Care" (Integrated Care Support Act) on March 27 next year, new divisions have been established: the Director-General for Integrated Care Support (at the director-general level), the Department of Integrated Care Policy, and the Department of Integrated Care Projects, all dedicated to community-based integrated care policy.

Integrated care is a system that provides a combination of welfare, healthcare, and long-term care services to help seniors, people with disabilities, and others facing difficulties in daily life to continue living healthily in their own communities. Beneficiaries of integrated care can receive services such as home visits by doctors, home nursing, home care and bathing, meal and mobility support, all according to individualized plans established by their respective city, county, or district governments.

Since 2018, the ministry has operated a temporary internal organization to plan and pilot the integrated care system. After the enactment of the Integrated Care Support Act in March last year, the temporary organization was expanded and reorganized into the "Integrated Medical and Long-Term Care Promotion Headquarters" to implement follow-up measures and prepare for the official launch of the system.

With the formal establishment of this organization at the bureau level, the ministry now plans to systematically support the nationwide rollout of the main integrated care program, continuously expand the number of beneficiaries and home-based services, and strengthen the expertise and execution of the system overall.

The ministry has also launched the Department of Pharmaceutical and Bioindustry to realize its ambition of becoming a global leader in pharmaceuticals and biohealth. The existing Department of Health Industry Promotion, which previously handled the development of the pharmaceutical, medical device, and cosmetics industries, will be divided and expanded into the Department of Pharmaceutical and Bioindustry (in charge of pharmaceuticals) and the Department of Medical Device and Cosmetics Industry (in charge of medical devices and cosmetics).

The Department of Disaster Medical Policy, which will serve as a control tower for the healthcare sector in the event of a national disaster, has also been newly established. This move is aimed at strengthening the state's responsibility for disaster response, in line with the government's top priority of protecting the lives and safety of its citizens. The Department of Disaster Medical Policy, which had previously operated as an autonomous body for up to one year, has now been formalized as a permanent department.

Through this organizational restructuring, the ministry has created one new bureau and four new departments, increasing its workforce by 39 people. This is the largest reorganization since the establishment of the second vice minister position in 2020.

Minister of Health and Welfare Chung Eun-kyung stated, "This organizational restructuring is significant as it strengthens the foundation needed to faithfully implement the new government's key health and welfare policy tasks," adding, "We will continue to secure the necessary workforce to respond proactively to the growing demand for national policy tasks and increased workload, including the enhancement of local, essential, and public healthcare."