President Yoon Seok-yeol’s Controversial Stance on Medical School Expansion & Government Policy

President Yoon Seok-yeol said in a public address yesterday regarding the increase in medical schools, “The decision was made after sufficient discussion with clear evidence” regarding the “2,000-person increase,” adding, “If (the medical community) comes up with a more reasonable plan, we can discuss it, but they will not enforce their will through force.” “The attempt to implement this is unacceptable,” he said. President Yoon devoted most of his 50-minute speech, without answering any questions, to detailing the legitimacy of the policy.

With the medical vacuum situation prolonging, people who expected the President to step forward and open a way out of the clogged legislative-government relationship must have felt even more frustrated after hearing yesterday’s statement. Since the government announced an unexpected ‘2,000 increase in personnel’ in early February, numerous experts have repeatedly pointed out the expected side effects if the government speeds up its plan. Public opinion, which had been fully supporting the expansion of medical schools, changed to ‘increase the number but adjust the scale and timing’, although concerns about a medical crisis may have played a role, but it may have been because experts judged the alternative of gradual expansion proposed by experts to be more reasonable. Nevertheless, the president’s statement showed no signs of paying attention to the intense social debate that had unfolded since the government’s announcement. This is why we listen to the government’s lack of communication.

At a time when dialogue with the medical community is desperately needed, it is questionable whether it was necessary to make a strong statement toward the medical community, saying, “We will not compromise with the vested interest cartel.” In particular, it was unwise to explain at length about residents’ refusal to receive group treatment by saying, “If you are worried about a decrease in future income, that is not the case.” Unlike doctors who went into cosmetic medicine, where they can easily make money after obtaining a medical license, residents are people who chose a teaching hospital because they wanted to do something that would save lives. If we criticize these doctors as literal egoists trying to make a living, how will those who have already left their minds due to the government’s unilateral announcement of increased military personnel come back?

The President said, “Government policy is always open,” and suggested dialogue with the medical community in the form of the President’s Special Committee on Medical Reform or another social consultative body. After speaking to the public, the President’s Office said, “We are not in the position that the number of 2,000 is an absolute figure,” and “We will not be buried in the number.” However, it cannot be changed without grounds just because stakeholders oppose it. In a situation where the quota allocation for each university has been announced, it is confusing whether they are sticking to the ‘2,000 increase in number of students’ or whether it can be changed. The rigid attitude of the alternatives presented by other experts, such as “numbers thrown out of thin air without any basis,” only serves to raise the voices of hardliners in the medical field, not to encourage dialogue.
2024-04-01 14:57:00
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