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Gov't allows return of trainee doctors to former hospitals to end standoff

Published: 07 Aug. 2025, 18:36

A consultative body comprising representatives from the government and trainee doctors holds a meeting at a restaurant in Seoul on Aug. 7 in an effort to break the prolonged standoff in the health care sector. [YONHAP]

The government has decided to allow trainee doctors who previously quit their jobs to resume training at their former hospitals, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said Thursday, a move aimed at ending a prolonged standoff prompted by the previous administration's move to sharply boost medical school admissions.

Those re-entering through the second-half recruitment process — scheduled to run from Aug. 11 to 31 — will be permitted to postpone the mandatory military service until completing their residency, according to the Health Ministry.

The decision, a ministry official said, is the “maximum possible action the government can take at this time.”

The standoff began in February 2024, when thousands of trainee doctors walked off their jobs while many medical students boycotted classes in protest against the government's plan to increase medical school admissions by 2,000 to around 5,000 each year starting in 2025.

Although the government later reversed course, restoring the 2026 admissions quota to its previous level of about 3,000, many trainee doctors and medical students have yet to fully return to hospitals and universities.

On July 25, a consultative body comprising representatives from the government and trainee doctors was launched to discuss conditions for a phased return to work.

The Korea Intern Resident Association, which represents junior doctors, has called on the government to establish a consultative body led by front-line medical professionals to review the previous administration's essential health care policy package. The group also urged improvements to the residency training environment and the establishment of a legal framework to ease the liability burden on doctors involved in medical accidents.

The government said it plans to hold further policy discussions on a biweekly basis, focusing on residency training conditions and other related issues.

Yonhap