“Mooncare a success…37 million people saved ₩9 tril.

,said President Moon Jae-in

“Will accelerate efforts to further broaden NHI coverage”

“Plans to cover sinus and thyroid ultrasound in 4Q… cover severe heart diseases, psoriasis, root canal next year

Presented at a performance report meeting held to mark the fourth anniversary of Mooncare

President Moon Jae-in said the government will continue and accelerate its efforts to further broaden the NHI coverage in 2022 as in this year.

 

Moon also stated that 37 million people in Korea were able to save a total of 9.2 trillion won in medical costs during the 4 years since Mooncare was implemented.

 

Also, he personally announced that insurance benefits on thyroid and sinus ultrasounds will be applied in Q4 of this year, which is earlier than planned, and NHI coverage will be extended to severe heart diseases, psoriasis, and root canal treatment by next year.

 

The news was announced by President Moon at the ‘Performance review meeting for the 4th anniversary of Mooncare’ that was held on the 12th.

 

He assessed that Mooncar, which was announced in 2017, has played an integral part in realizing the goal of building a nation free from worries about hospital bills while exceeding the target level of health insurance reserves.

 

Moon's understanding was that Mooncare is one of the policies that the people were most satisfied with.

 

As such, the president plans to further broaden and accelerate the NHI coverage enhancement policy.

 

Specifically, he pledged to implement NHI coverage to sinus and thyroid ultrasounds from Q4 this year, and to severe heart diseases, psoriasis, and root canal treatment by the next year.

 

In addition, Moon said the government will expand support for children's public centers and establish a short-term hospitalization service center for severely ill pediatric patients to expand NHI support for children.

 

Also, the government plans to designate a regional hospital as a base hospital for critically ill patients from the second half of this year so that the severely ill may receive treatment in hospitals near their residence.

 

Furthermore, President Moon said that the health insurance will prime and accelerate the development of medical technology in Korea and that the government will make the effort to catch both birds – of securing NHI’s sustainability and expanding coverage.

 

“Mooncare not only tended to disease of individuals, but it also allowed us to promptly and appropriately respond to all areas of healthcare related to infectious diseases, from prevention and diagnosis of COVID-19, its treatment expense, to securing support for medical personnel.

 

In other words, NHI well-played its role as the last defender in controlling the COVID-19 crisis.

 

I would like to express my gratitude to the NHIS and medical personnel for their efforts in strengthening NHI coverage.” The president continued, "The government had focused on enhancing coverage for severe diseases that bring a high medical burden such as cancer.

 

We are also in the progress of abolishing the selective consultation fee system, applying insurance to upper-grade wards, expanding the integrated nursing care service, expanding insurance to MRIs and ultrasounds, and reimbursing non-reimbursed drugs.

 

Also, we will institutionalize disaster medical expenses support for 4 major severe diseases in low-income families, and cover up to 30 million won for all diseases and lower the annual copayment ceiling.” “We enhanced the coverage rate for children who are 5 years or younger, as well as for seniors 65 years and older that more frequently visit hospitals.

 

As a result, 37 million people have saved a total of 9.2 trillion won in medical costs.

 

As a high level of citizenship is central to NHI’s sustainability, the government will make efforts to more transparently manage NHI finances.” MOHW·NHIS "will continue enhancing coverage next year” The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Health Insurance Service also added on details to support Moon’s performance report on Mooncare.

 

In 2017, the MOHW had presented measures to lower the patients’ burden by reimbursing the medically necessary non-reimbursed items and drastically reducing the medical cost for the underserved population such as the elderly, children, women, and low-income families.

 

‘ The coverage enhancement measures that were planned to be implemented by 2022 focused on the following three core areas:▲reimbursing the non-reimbursed ▲relieving out-of-pocket costs for the underserved population ▲reinforcing the medical safety net.

 

To reimbursee the non-reimbursed the authorities had abolished the selective consultation fee, and applied insurance to 2-person and 3-person wards in hospital levels or higher medical institutions.

 

The integrated nursing care service was also expanded by over two times.

 

Also, the non-reimbursed items that are necessary for treatment such as ultrasounds and MRI tests were applied insurance in phases to reduce the medical cost.

 

As a result, NHI coverage in tertiary hospitals increased from 65.1% in 2017 to 69.5% in 2019, and coverage in general hospitals also increased from 63.8% to 66.7% during the same period.

 

By easing the medical cost borne by the underserved population, the burden of hospital expenses for children, the elderly, the disabled, and women were reduced.

 

For children, the copayment rate of the hospital treatment cost was reduced to 5% from 10-20%, and the outpatient cost was also reduced for children under the age of 1.

 

The copayment rate for outpatient cost in premature infants and low birth weight infants was also reduced, and insurance was applied to cavity treatment, cleft lip treatment, and orthodontic braces treatment.

 

For the elderly, the copayment rate for the treatment of severe dementia and other major conditions such as dentures and implants was lowered.

 

For the disabled, eligibility in receiving reimbursement for assistive devices was expanded, and the reimbursed amount for prosthetic legs and hands was raised.

 

In addition, in order to strengthen the medical safety net, the upper ceiling of the out-of-pocket cost paid by the bottom 50% of the income class was reduced to a level near 10% of their annual income, thereby increasing the reimbursed amount for low-income families.

 

As a result, about 37 million people saved 9.2 trillion won in medical cost reduction from 2018 to 2020.

 

Positive responses from the public regarding the coverage enhancing measures also jumped from 39.7 % at the time the policy was announced to 94% in August 2020.