Apr. 14

• ●Why don't trainee doctors, medical professors see eye to eye? (The Korea Herald)
  An obstacle lies between the medical circle moving towards talks with the government with a unified proposal, after the hed of the junior doctors' group shed light on the hierarchical dynamics between medical professors and trainee doctors in hospitals.
  
  

• ●Yoon's med school quota hike plan at crossroads following ruling party's election defeat (The Korea Times)
  The Yoon Suk Yeol administration is standing at a crossroads regarding its plan to raise the number of medical students starting next year, following the crushing defeat of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) in the general elections held on Wednesday.
  
  

• ●Foreign workers outearn locals, leading South Korea's labor transformation (The Chosun Daily)
  In the Daebul Industrial Complex, located in Yeongam-gun, South Jeolla Province, a secondary supplier to shipbuilding industry pays an average monthly salary of 6.5 to 7 million won to a Vietnamese worker with seven years of experience in cutting steel plates and welding.

Apr. 15

• ●Govt. repeats appeal for dialogue with doctors amid prolonged walkout (The Korea Herald)
  Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong once again called on doctors Monday to come forward for dialogue to end the prolonged walkout by junior doctors and present a unified proposal regarding the quota for medical school admissions, stressing its firm will to push for medical reform plans.
  
  

• ●Average pension benefits for men nearly double that of women: report (The Korea Herald)
  Female beneficiaries of the national pension in South Korea were on average receiving 390,845 won ($282) a month as of November 2023, compared to 756,898 won for their male counterparts, according to the National Pension Service on Monday.

Apr. 16

• ●Govt., doctors differ widely on how to resolve medical reform stalemate amid prolonged walkout (The Korea Herald)
  Despite ongoing efforts to find a breakthrough regarding the prolonged walkout by doctors, the government and doctors differ widely on how to discuss medical reform plans, as doctors have demanded one-on-one talks rather than discussions within a consultative body for public consensus.

Apr. 17

• ●1 out of 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse (The Korea Herald)
  Amid rapid aging and an increasing number of young people choosing to hold off on marriage, the proportion of one-person households in South Korea increased last year to 33.4 percent, data from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family showed Wednesday.
  
  

• ●Ministry to hire retired doctors to fill medical void (The Korea Herald)
  The Health Ministry on Wednesday started recruiting retired or soon-to-retire physicians to address rural healthcare deserts and essential medical fields as the junior doctors' mass resignation entered its ninth week.
  
  

• ●Nearly 30% of foreign laborers in Korea work over 50 hours per week (The Korea Times)
  Nearly three out of 10 foreign employees in Korea worked 50 hours or longer per week last year, data showed Wednesday.
  
  

• ●Single-person households inch up to 33.6% in 2023: survey (The Korea Times)
  Single-person households accounted for 33.6 percent of all households last year, up 3.2 percentage points from three years ago, with more people complaining of loneliness and difficulty dealing with emergencies or sickness alone, data showed Wednesday.
  
  

• ●Younger Koreans more willing to have children, survey says (Korea JoongAng Daily)
  Young Koreans are more open to having children than they were just several years ago, according to the latest government survey.
  
  

• ●1 in 3 Koreans live alone, family types becoming diverse (The Korea Herald)
  Amid rapid aging and an increasing number of young people choosing to hold off on marriage, the proportion of one-person households in South Korea increased last year to 33.4 percent, data from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family showed Wednesday.

Apr. 18

• ●Doctors dig in as government keeps low profile on expansion plan (The Korea Herald)
  The Korean government and the medical circles are continuing their tug-of-war over increasing the number of medical students starting next year, while patients have been bearing the brunt of junior doctors' walkout for two months.
  
  

• ●5.1% of Korean population registered as disabled in 2023: report (The Korea Herald)
  More than 2.64 million South Koreans, comprising 5.1 percent of the country's total population, were registered as disabled persons in 2023, according to annual statistics released by the Ministry of Health and Welfare on Thursday.
  
  

• ●Patients deplore absence of medical options, voice fears as doctors' walkout nears 2 months (The Korea Times)
  Patients with cancer or other serious diseases voiced frustrations and fears Thursday over their dwindling medical options as the trainee doctors' collective walkout approaches its two-month mark.
  
  

• ●Health minister renews commitment to accomplish medical reform (The Korea Times)
  Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong renewed his vow to acoomplish medical reform Thursday, although a mass walkout by trainee doctors in protest of the reform has crippled public health services for about two months.
  
  

• ●No. of farming households falls below 1 mil. for first time in 2023 (The Korea Times)
  The number of farming households in Korea fell below 1 million for the first time ever in 2023 and half of farmers were aged 65 and older, data showed Thursday.
  
  

• ●More younger people willing to have babies: ministry data (The Korea Times)
  A growing number of Koreans in their 20s and 30s are actively considering starting families, cautiously raising hopes that the nation's demographic crisis, exacerbated by the alarmingly low birthrate, could be resolved in the near future.
  
  

• ●Patients die while searching for available hospitals amid medical vacuum (Korea JoongAng Daily)
  A patient in her 60s seeking help for chest pain in South Gyeongsang died last month while awaiting surgery after six nearby hospitals refused her admission, fire authorities said Wednesday.
  
  

• ●Civic groups call on govt. to end crackdown on illegal immigration (The Korea Herald)
  A coalition of eight South Korean civic groups and unions on Thursday called on the Yoon Suk Yeol government to end its intensified crackdown on foreign nationals residing illegally in the country.
  
  

• ●Will tug-of-war between doctors, government end soon? (The Korea Herald)
  The Korean government on Thursday broke its silence on its medical student quota expansion plan after a week of maintainig a low profile following the ruling party's major election defeat, stoking hopes that it could possibly end the monthslong tug-of-war with the medical circle.

Apr. 19

• ●Government considers granting medical schools autonomy on admission quotas (Korea JoongAng Daily)
  The government is likely to provide autonomy to medical schools for their admission quota expansion on Firday, accepting requests from presidents of national universities.
  
  

• ●Government flags changes in expansion plan (The Korea Herald)
  The Korean government on Friday signaleda softening of its stance on its plan to add 2,000 more places at medical schools starting next year, nearly a month after finalizing the regional allocations.
  
  

• ●Govt. likely to accept university chiefs' request to lower med school enrollment quota (The Korea Herald)
  The government is likely to accept a request made by the chiefs of six national universities to lower their medical school enrollment quotas for next year, officials said Friday.
  
  

• ●Korea to fully shift to 'endemic' from COVID-19 pandemic starting next month (The Korea Times)
  Korea is set to fully shift to an "endemic" approach to the COVID-19 pandemic, lifting some last-remaining mandates, including indoor mask requirements for hospitals, from next month, officials said Friday.
  
  

• ●100 Philippine domestic helpers to begin working in Seoul in August (The Korea Times)
  Korea will receive 100 domestic helpers from the Philippines at the end of July for a pilot program to test the import of foreign care workers.
  
  

• ●Gov't offers flexible option for next year's medical school admission quota (Korea JoongAng Daily)
  The government moved to break the deadlock with doctors on Friday by accpeting national medical schools' request to flexibly adjust their admission quota for next year, but the medical community is not welcoming the government's offer.
  
  

• ●Korea ends Covid-19 response, disbands disaster management headquarters (Korea JoongAng Daily)
  The government disbanded the central authority dedicated to Covid-19 management on Friday, marking the end of a four-year-long pandemic response.
  
  

• ●Most vulnerable patients hit hardest amid gov't and medical sector standoff (Korea JoongAng Daily)
  Patients in critical condition or with severe illnesses are being hit the hardest by the ongoing clash between the government and the medical sector over the medical school quota expansion.
  
  

• ●After 2 months of delayed, denied medical care, Koreans worry worst may be yet to come (The Hankyoreh)
  Since losing her husband last month, Choi Hee-suk, 65, can't help mulling over various what-ifs: What if interns and residents hadn't abandoned their posts?