South Korea's Yoon says won't back down over medical reforms as doctors strike

SEOUL — President Yoon Suk-yeol vowed on Tuesday (Feb 27) to go ahead with a plan to increase the number of students admitted into medical schools to improve healthcare in South Korea, and said there was no justification for the protests this reform had triggered.

More than 9,000 young doctors, or about two-thirds of the total number of physician trainees in South Korea, walked off the job last week because of the plan, saying the healthcare sector was not short of doctors, and the government should address pay and working conditions first.

Several ministers have threatened the protesters with legal action, including suspending their licences, while also inviting the doctors to hold talks to end the dispute.

Yoon, however, maintained the same hardline stance he took in the face of a strike by truckers in 2022, as the dispute started to disrupt supply chains and threatened to paralyse key industries.

"This is not a matter for negotiations or compromise," he said of the plan, which also includes expanded legal protection for doctors and plans to improve healthcare in rural areas.

"It is difficult to justify under any circumstances the collective action that takes public health and lives hostage and threatens human lives and safety," Yoon said in televised comments, adding that the package of health care reforms included many of the demands of the medical community.

Many Koreans back Yoon's plan, and his support ratings have edged up in recent weeks, ahead of a general election in April. A recent Gallup Korea poll showed 76 per cent support for the plan.

On Tuesday, the health authorities gave nurses the right to perform some medical procedures normally conducted by doctors, as authorities seek to ease the strain on