Barriers should be lowered to make way for corporate hospitals: think tank

SEOUL, Feb. 11 (Yonhap) -- A state-run think tank called Thursday for the
government to lower barriers for companies looking to open new hospitals, arguing
that corporate-style medical centers would boost competition and improve overall
patient care.

"By easing regulations on establishment of hospitals and their fund raising
methods, we can expect to see enhanced market principles and transparency," the
Korea Development Institute said in a report co-authored by researchers Koh
Young-sun and Yun Hee-suk.
"Such a move, in other words, would bring transparency and soundness to the
overall medical industry by legalizing fund-raising by hospitals, which
inevitably depend on shady ways to secure necessary money for operation," it
added.
The policy suggestion comes amid a protracted debate among government agencies
over the pros and cons of allowing for corporate or investor-owned hospitals.
Under current law, only doctors and government-owned or non-profit organizations
can open and run hospitals.
The finance ministry has been pushing to allow the opening of corporate
hospitals, claiming it would significantly improve the quality of healthcare and
create new jobs. The welfare ministry has countered that profit-driven hospitals
would lead to a rise in medical costs and effectively raise barriers to quality
medical services.
The KDI said that the medical industry in South Korea runs on a "supply-oriented"
structure where the rights of patients are frequently ingored, calling for the
government to increase intervention to make the industry "customer-oriented."
Eased regulations on hospital establishment may be one effective way to
accelerate the generation of diverse medical services to meet the growing and
sophisticated demands of patients, it added.
The think tank also suggested that the government establish a "national portal"
where hospitals would provide information on medical service costs and quality
levels, based on which patients could choose where to receive medical treatment.
Quality control should also be strictly enforced in medical workers so that
patients can receive good service from any hospital or medical institute they
choose, it added.
"Currently the quality management here in South Korea lags far behind
international standards," the KDI said. "More efforts should be made for quality
control on medical workers."
(END)

Delete & Prev | Delete & Next