Health Ministry aims to draw more international patients

The Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to attract more international patients by increasing investment in the biohealth industry and promoting more advanced medical services.

Second Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Park Min-soo speaks during a press conference with foreign media outlets in Jung District, central Seoul, on Tuesday. [MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND WELFARE]

The Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to attract more international patients by increasing investment in the biohealth industry and promoting more advanced medical services.

"Many international patients already receive care in the fields of dermatology, aesthetics and plastic surgery in Korea, but we plan to go beyond so we can provide advanced medical services and seek global expansion," said Park Min-soo, the second vice health and welfare minister, during a press conference with foreign media outlets in Jung District, central Seoul, on Tuesday.

According to Park, Korea has advanced medical technologies in areas such as cancer and organ transplantation.

Around 500,000 international patients were treated in Korea in 2019, the highest figure ever, which plunged since then due to the outbreak of Covid-19.

The figure dropped to 117,000 in 2020. It is gradually recovering, up to the 50 percent level of 2019’s figure last year.

Developing at least a pair of blockbuster drugs worth one trillion won ($753 million) in the next five years is one of the ministry's plans to boost the country's biohealth industry.

Biohealth refers to biopharmaceuticals and medical devices, including test kits and health management services.

“There is an advent of a great number of Korean drugs that have the potential to become so-called global blockbuster drugs,” said Park.

The vice minister cited the examples of Yuhan’s Leclaza, an anticancer drug, and Daewoong Phamaceutical’s Fexuclue tablets, a gastroesophageal reflux medication.

The country aims to create two groundbreaking new medicines by 2027 and double medical device exports.

To do so, the ministry will expand R&D investment, strengthen financial and export support, nurture professional specialists and innovate the regulatory framework.

Investment in R&D will be increased and research methodologies will be innovated in the next five years.

The government allocated some 780.1 billion won to major R&D budgets, up 12 percent from last year.

It plans to inject some 49.5 billion won of the budget to establish an innovative R&D system that will allow vaccine development and production within 100 days and develop technology that will increase accuracy in early screenings for teenage cancers to 90 percent within five years.

The government also plans to make investments to nurture 110,000 biohealth personnel in the next five years.

A total of 754 people from foreign countries and 68 Koreans completed their training so far after the World Health Organization (WHO) nominated Korea as the global training hub for biomanufacturing in February last year.

“The government aims to develop the country’s biohealth industry into a major strategic industry and the next semiconductor industry,” said Park, stressing that international collaboration is essential in order to achieve this.

To further enhance cooperation between countries within the biohealth industry, the Korean government and the WHO will jointly host their second World Bio Summit in Incheon from Nov. 20 through 21.

Some 300 heads of international organizations and CEOs of biopharmaceutical companies are expected to discuss what society and businesses should prepare to fight against the next pandemic.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]