On April 1, patient advocacy groups voiced their support for the Patient Basic Act, which was passed during the National Assembly’s Plenary Session the previous day (March 31). They hailed this as a significant milestone for healthcare in the Republic of Korea, highlighting a shift toward a patient-centered approach.
The legislation defines the rights and responsibilities of patients, establishes a framework for patient policy, and creates the Patient Policy Committee to review and encompass patient-related policies. It also designates May 29 as Patient’s Day, a legal commemorative day. The law will take effect one year after its promulgation.
Before the introduction of the Patient Basic Act, the Patient Safety Act primarily focused on measures to ensure patient safety, which limited the active protection of patient rights. Additionally, there was no clear legal framework or institutional mechanisms for patients to actively participate in policymaking related to their rights.
According to the Korean Alliance of Patients Organizations, the Korean Organization for Rare Diseases, and the Korean Breast Cancer Patients Alliance, the newly passed Patient Basic Act marks a shift in the healthcare paradigm from a provider-centered model to a patient-centered one. The legislation establishes fundamental framework to create a healthcare environment focused on protecting patient health and promoting patient rights. The Minister of Health and Welfare is required to develop and implement a basic plan for patient policy every five years, while the Minister of Welfare and local governors are required to establish and execute annual implementation plans based on this basic plan.
The government will also conduct a survey on the state of patient policies and disclose the results every five years. The Minister of Welfare will oversee a Patient Policy Committee dedicated to protecting patient health, supporting their treatment, and enhancing their rights. Additionally, hospitals of a certain size must establish and operate a Patient Safety Committee. The legislation recognizes and supports the legal status of patient organizations.
The designation of May 29 as Patient’s Day commemorates the death of Jong Hyun Jung, a nine-year-old boy who died in a medical accident during leukemia treatment in 2010. His tragic death prompted the enactment of the Patient Safety Act to strengthen patient safety measures. Three patient organizations issued a statement saying that the National Assembly’s passage of the Patient Basic Act reflects the urgent demand to recognize patients not as mere objects of treatment but as subjects of rights, and it acknowledges the need to create an environment where patients can actively engage in their treatment.
They added that the enactment of the Patient Basic Act is significant as it aligns with the growing demand to shift healthcare policy from a provider-centered to a patient-centered approach, reflecting the current government’s healthcare policy direction. Now, the key task will be ensuring that the law is effectively implemented in practice.