What Should be Prepared for the Mutual Accreditation for Medical Health Licenses When Korea Opens to Physicians and Dentists from the Rest of the World

will allow foreigners to establish medical institutes in the Free Economic Zone, which includes the Korean cities of Busan, Jinhae, Incheon, and Kwangyang. Physicians and dentists with a license from a foreign country will be allowed to practice in those institutes, and treat Korean patients. The government anticipates that this policy will reduce the expenses of medical travel, improve service for Koreans, and strengthen the competitiveness of Korean medical institutes in the global market. The policy's primary objective is to aid foreigners in Korea, but it is also designed to increase foreign investment in Korea. The purpose of these policies is very clear. However , regarding the basic health rights of people in Korea, both Koreans and foreigners, the accreditation of foreign licenses, without the stipulation that such licenses conform to Korean law, does not meet global standards. If the Korean Government wants to allow foreign medical health personnel to practice in Korea, a mutual agreement on the accreditation of licenses between corresponding countries is necessary. A medical VISA is not an unconditional accreditation, and test-equating procedures are required at the levels of undergraduate training and graduate training, as well as that of continuing medical education. Also on July 6, 2006, the Minister of Health and Welfare of the Republic of Korea announced the revision of its " Enforcement Regulation for Medical Law, " which was rejected by the Minister of Government Legislation since it violated the " Medical Law. " The proposed revised content follows: Foreigners with a medical health license, such as physicians, dentists, or nurses, can treat people from their homeland who are residing in Korea, when employed by a general hospital or clinic as defined under " Medical Law, " to guarantee the health rights of foreigners residing in Korea. Because the Korean Government is greatly concerned about the health of foreigners working in Korea, this kind of revision was launched. However, because the revision targets temporary immigrant laborers, the medical expenses will be not be great. The general hospitals or clinics should decide on whether to hire foreign medical health personnel after considering the number of patients it commonly treats. Although the government will allows medical institutes to hire foreigners, active recruitment depends on the market. It is questionable whether other Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries offer this kind of system to foreigners residing in their countries. Although the revision was rejected …