Jan. 31

• ●Health Infrastructure Investment Outperforms Genetics, Says Seoul National Univesity Professor The Chosun Daily
  "To prevent the 'medical cost bomb' that will hit Korea in the future, proactive investment in preemptive health management and disease prevention is necessary."

Feb. 01

• ●Survey reveals retirement age increase favored by older Koreans Korea JoongAng Daily
  Two out of three Koreans aged 50 and older believe that the retirement age should be higher than the current 65, according to a recent report.
  
  

• ●Is a sugar tax good public health care policy or just a government cash grab? Korea JoongAng Daily
  The debate over a levy on sugar has resurfaced after President Lee Jae Myung asked the public for its views on imposing such charges.
  
  

• ●Two-thirds of older Koreans back raising retirement age: study The Korea Times
  Two out of three Koreans aged 50 and older support extending the mandatory retirement age, a recent survey found, with respondents favoring an average retirement age of 66.3--higher than the current eligibility age of 65 for the national and basic pension programs.
  
  

• ●'Naming and shaming' of child-support defaulters resurfaces in Korea The Korea Times
  A digital wall of shame targeting parents who fail to pay child support has resurfaced in Korea, reigniting a national debate over whether public shaming is a legitimate tool of justice or an unlawful invasion of privacy.
  
  

• ●Young Koreans show renewed interest in marriage: survey The Korea Herald
  Unmarried South Koreans are increasingly expressing an intention to get married, suggesting a gradual shift in how younger generations view marriage and family formation, a survey showed Sunday.

Feb. 02

• ●Single-Person Households Face Elevated Early Death Risk The Chosun Daily
  People living alone have a 35-43% higher risk of dying before age 65 compared to those living with family, according to a new study.
  
  

• ●Record Senior Jobs Leave 216,000 Elderly Unsuccessful The Chosun Daily
  Kim, 71 years old, who lives with his wife in Dongnae-gu, Busan, has worked non-regular jobs such as parking attendant and delivery driver since retiring from a small business.
  
  

• ●Seoul unveils new suicide-prevention measures amid persistent deaths The Korea Herald
  Seoul is confronting persistent suicide pressures, even as its rate remains the lowest in the country, prompting the city to expand both human and artificial intelligence-driven support systems.

Feb. 03

• ●Health Insurance Premiums to Hit 10.4% by 2035 The Chosun Daily
  A study has found that due to the rapid increase in medical costs caused by an aging population, the current health insurance premium rate of 7.19% of income must rise to 10.4% by 2035 and 20.1% by 2050.
  
  

• ●Korean adoptees welcome fresh inquiry into rights violations in adoption process The Korea Times
  Overseas adoptees welcomed the planned launch of a new Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in Korea, expressing hope that it would allow the government to resume and expand investigations into suspected misconduct in an overseas adoption system that sent roughly 200,000 Korean children to Western countries, mostly in the 1960s through the 1980s.
  
  

• ●Woman gives birth in ambulance after seven hospitals refuse care The Korea Herald
  A pregnant woman who was rejected by seven hospitals after her water broke ended up giving birth in an ambulance, rescue authorities in North Chungcheong Province said Tuesday.
  
  

• ●Women's forum in Seoul spotlights lagging female empowerment, Korea's gender equality challenges Korea JoongAng Daily
  Irish Ambassador to Korea Michelle Winthrop on Tuesday called for greater female representation in society, saying that progress in women's empowerment has lagged behind the astonishing innovations in science and technology.
  
  

• ●Seoul's grandchild care allowance program records high satisfaction rating Korea JoongAng Daily
  Seoul's grandchild care allowance recorded the highest satisfaction rating among related policies by the Seoul Metropolitan Government.
  
  

• ●Revised Tobacco Business Act takes effect April 24, strengthens regulations on e-cigarettes Korea JoongAng Daily
  E-cigarettes containing synthetic nicotine will be subject to the same regulations as conventional combustible cigarettes starting April 24, under a revised Tobacco Business Act that expands the legal definition of tobacco.

Feb. 04

• ●Wealth Gap between 20s-30s and 40s-50s Hits Record High The Chosun Daily
  The wealth gap in real estate and other assets between those in their 20s and 30s and those in their 40s and 50s has widened to a record high.
  
  

• ●Korea to regulate e-cigarettes by classifying them as tobacco products The Korea Herald
  The South Korean government said Wednesday that all nicotine-based products will be reclassified as tobacco products starting April, in a bid to rein in unregulated sales and promotion of e-cigarettes and vape juice that are in a legal loophole.
  
  

• ●'COVID-19 pandemic sparked individualism, less motivation among college students' The Korea Herald
  The social isolation induced by the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have left lasting effects on those who were young college students at the time:...
  
  

• ●Naturalization in South Korea top 11,000 in 2025, highest since COVID-19 pandemic The Korea Herald
  The number of newly naturalized South Koreans surpassed 11,000 in 2025, marking the highest level since the COVID-19 pandemic.
  
  

• ●Employment of Koreans aged 55 to 64 reaches all time high The Korea Herald
  South Korea's employment rate for people aged 55 to 64 climbed to a record 70.5 percent in 2025, government data showed Wednesday, crossing the 70 percent threshold for the first time since records began in 1983.
  
  

• ●Son caring for bedridden mom began sharing his journey. Then other carers responded The Korea Herald
  Cho Bum-hee was 23, preparing to return to college after completing his military service, when his mother suffered a bran hemorrhage in 2015.
  
  

• ●Is Korea's birthrate crisis turning around? Why 'echo boomer' women are choosing to have children? Korea JoongAng Daily
  Korea was infamous for its subzero birthrate, but after hitting rock bottom in 2023, the number of births in Korea began to rise in 2024, albeit gradually, especially among women in their 30s.

Feb. 05

• ●Korea's new food bank-style welfare pilot is growing fast. But who should foot the bill? The Korea Herald
  South Korea's new food bank-style welfare program is drawing questions over access, feasibility and uneven local participation, even as the government plans a rapid nationwide expansion.
  
  

• ●As 'DINKs' rethink parenting, Korea's notoriously low birthrate showing signs of a rebound Korea JoongAng Daily
  Eom Jeong-hye and her husband, Kim Seung-hun, both 36, welcomed their first child last year, ending eight years of their lives as a "double income, no kids" (DINK) couple.
  
  

• ●Bill proposed to safeguard workers from AI-driven job losses The Korea Times
  Lawmakers have introduced a bill that would require the government to better protect workers from job losses caused by artificial intelligence (AI), amid growing concerns that machines will replace human labor--fears recently sharpened by Hyundai Motor's Atlas humanoid robot project.
  
  

• ●Korea needs to restore social trust, unity to overcome extereme polarization The Korea Times
  Experts in Korea called for an urgent restoration of social trust and a revival of the communal spirit to overcome the extreme political polarization and fragmentation currently paralyzing the nation.

Feb. 06

• ●Government to Finalize 580 Medical School Quota Increase on 10th The Chosun Daily
  The government has decided to finalize and announe the medical school quota for the five-year period from the 2027 academic year to the 2031 academic year at the Health and Medical Policy Deliberation Committee (HMPDC) meeting scheduled for the 10th.
  
  

• ●Korea to require retirement pensions at all workplaces, add fund-based plans The Korea Times
  Korea will gradually require all workplaces to introduce retirement pension plans and plans to roll out a professionally managed pension system aimed at boosting investment returns, under a landmark agreement reached Friday by labor, business and the government.