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Busan Metropolitan City Holds Meeting on Public Conversion of Wallace Memorial Baptist Hospital, Discusses Regional Healthcare Issues

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Busan Metropolitan City announced that it will hold a meeting on the public conversion of Wallace Memorial Baptist Hospital to address regional healthcare issues today (16) at 3:00 p.m. at the Seoul Smart Work Center.

The meeting will be attended by key stakeholders including Kim Kyung-duk, Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs of Busan Metropolitan City, officials from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, and the chair of the subcommittee of the Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee.

The meeting will discuss key regional healthcare issues, including strengthening the role of public hospitals, enhancing cooperation within the regional healthcare system, linking health insurance policy with local government healthcare policy, and measures to expand the foundation for essential regional medical services.

In particular, Busan Metropolitan City will explain its policy direction for expanding regional public healthcare and improving citizens’ access to medical services, while emphasizing the need for cooperation at the level of health insurance policy.

The city also plans to request an early on-site visit by the Health Insurance Policy Deliberation Committee to support the promotion of the public conversion of Wallace Memorial Baptist Hospital.

Busan Metropolitan City has continuously expressed its commitment to converting Wallace Memorial Baptist Hospital into a public hospital in order to resolve the issue of the hospital’s bankruptcy in 2017 and address the medical service gap in the eastern Busan area. To this end, the city has prepared financial support measures including full support for the cost of constructing a new building and acceptance of the committee’s requirement to compensate operational deficits for ten years.

Going forward, the city plans to further strengthen cooperation with the central government and health insurance policy-related institutions to continue developing a citizen-centered public healthcare system.

Kim Kyung-duk, Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs of Busan Metropolitan City, stated, “Close cooperation between local governments and health insurance policy is essential to reduce regional disparities in healthcare and guarantee citizens’ right to health. Busan Metropolitan City will further strengthen cooperation with the central government and health insurance policy-related institutions to continuously expand the regional public healthcare foundation, including the promotion of the public conversion of Wallace Memorial Baptist Hospital, while reinforcing the essential healthcare system and improving the quality of medical services.”