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Korea considers legalizing telemedicine, but key points of contention remain

Published: 14 Aug. 2025, 20:00

A doctor performs a telemedicine session at a clinic in Dobong District, northern Seoul, on May 30, 2023. [MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND WELFARE]

Over the past five years, approximately 23,000 medical institutions in Korea have offered telemedicine services, with 4.92 million patients using the system, according to new government data on Thursday.

As the National Assembly prepares to begin discussions this month on formally legalizing telemedicine — which has so far only operated as a pilot program — key points of contention include whether to allow first-time consultations and whether medication delivery should be permitted.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare released the data on Thursday, which were based on records submitted to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. Telemedicine was first temporarily allowed in February 2020 at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and transitioned to a pilot program in June 2023 with slightly revised eligibility criteria.

Between February 2020 and now, 22,758 medical institutions have provided at least one telemedicine consultation. During the pandemic, 20,585 institutions participated. Since then, 9,599 have offered the service. Around 98 to 99 percent of the institutions involved were clinics.

A total of 4.92 million patients have used telemedicine at least once. During the height of the pandemic, the monthly average was 190,000. After June 2023, when the service was limited mostly to returning patients, the figure dropped to between 130,000 and 140,000 per month. The number rose again to 180,000 after February last year, when the government temporarily lifted restrictions in response to a mass resignation by medical residents.

Telemedicine still accounts for a small share of all outpatient visits — only about 0.3 percent of the 78.02 million monthly outpatient cases during the pandemic and 0.2 percent in the post-pandemic period. However, the rate of telemedicine use during evenings and weekends was 15 percent — nearly double that of in-person consultations, which stood at 8 percent.

A pharmacy in Jongno, central Seoul, notifies visitors that it sells Wegovy in a written post on Dec. 2, 2024. [YONHAP]

Three bills to formalize telemedicine have been submitted to the National Assembly, and the Health and Welfare Committee is expected to begin deliberations this month. While there is broad agreement that the time has come to legalize the service, several unresolved issues remain.

The biggest point of debate is whether to allow initial consultations via telemedicine. The Korean Medical Association (KMA) has long opposed this, arguing that it "poses a threat to patient safety." In a task force meeting on Wednesday, the KMA reaffirmed its stance that “first-time consultations should not be permitted.”

Others argue that an outright ban is overly rigid. "The initial consensus was that only follow-up appointments should be allowed at clinics," said Jung Ji-yeon, secretary general of the Consumers Union of Korea, at a separate advisory meeting hosted by the ministry. “But based on feedback from the field, we believe that targeted, negative-list regulations may be more appropriate than an across-the-board ban on first-time consultations."

"The distinction between first-time and return visits is an administrative one used for insurance claims, not something doctors can easily determine before seeing a patient," said Kwon Yong-jin, a professor at Seoul National University Hospital. “Rather than legally prohibiting initial consultations, it would be better to impose restrictions on prescriptions."

The issue of drug delivery also remains contentious. Pharmacists have raised concerns about potential side effects, but according to a ministry official, “the advisory panel largely agreed that it is necessary.” Currently, medication delivery is allowed only in exceptional cases, such as for residents of remote islands or individuals with mobility challenges.

There are also concerns that telemedicine is being used to overprescribe non-reimbursable medications. In response to complaints that the weight-loss drug Wegovy was being overprescribed through telemedicine, the ministry restricted its use in December last year.

“There are growing calls to impose stricter limits on drugs such as acne and hair loss treatments that are not covered by insurance but are frequently overprescribed,” the ministry official said.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY NAM SOO-HYUN [[email protected]]