Deductible system for petty medical fees to be introduced

The government plans to introduce a deductible system for medical fees under which medical insurance would not cover costs below a fixed level and instead patients would have to pay them.

The formula is to be implemented next year at the earliest, according Health-Welfare minister Choi Sun-Jung Wednesday.

The ministry also plans to introduce a Medical Savings Account (MSA) system under which part of a subscriber's medical insurance premiums would be deposited in his or her MSA, from which medical fees for minor illnesses like colds would be paid. The remaining money would be returned to the subscriber.

Choi unveiled the plan in a report to President Kim Dae-Jung on his ministry¡¯s policy plans for this year. The report was delivered at Cheong Wa Dae.

Choi said the ministry was considering the plans to stabilize the medical insurance system, which suffers from chronic deficits.

The envisioned plans were designed to reduce public expenditures on medical fees by curbing the use of clinics or hospitals for treatment of minor illnesses. This would leave more funds available for those suffering from cancer or chronic diseases.

However, the plan is expected to face opposition from low-income earners and the elderly, who are expected to oppose the requirement that they pay the deductible.

Details of the new system will be finalized through public hearings and other procedures this year. However, a ministry official said that the plan would be implemented at third-level medical institutions for the time being to reduce the burden of people in the low-income bracket. The amount for which the deductible would have to be paid is most likely to be set at 10,000 to 30,000 won.