The National Health Insurance Corporation (NHIC) is expecting a surplus of W1.5 trillion this year. If you count the W300 to W400 billion that will come from the year-end settlement of accounts the extra cash will be close to W2 trillion. Last year as well, the NHIC was in the black by W1.5 trillion and thereby successfully worked its way out of years of deficit.
Given the character of National Health Insurance (NHI), surpluses are not desirable. The principle should be that people pay what is appropriate and receive what is appropriate. The system operates based on health insurance paid by the people, the national budget, and fees collected out of cigarette prices. What the surplus means is that people are being asked to pay too much. Still, being well in the black is an opportunity to correct the way people receive so little in insurance. Currently the system offers only 60 percent protection, and that's something that needs to be changed.
The government has announced that it will have expensive examinations (such as MRI) and pharmaceutical products covered by NHI, and reduce what people have to pay themselves for serious diseases such as cancer and heart and brain ailments using the surplus. You can't find fault with trying to reduce the burden people must face when they have incurable or rare diseases, which cost a lot of money to treat. Frequently when a family member is found to have cancer, the family goes bankrupt.
Also, much more needs to be done for those who are too poor to receive the benefits of medical insurance. The flipside of the massive surplus is the pain felt by common people (seomin), who are unable to pay the small insurance fee because of the economic stagnation that has continued now for years, since that has meant they have been unable to seek medical attention. The surplus should especially not be used by the medical industry as an excuse to raise prices excessively.
The Hankyoreh, 29 April 2005.
[Translations by Seoul Selection (PMS)]
[Editorial] Nat'l Health Insurance Must Cover More |
