Page 250 - 2018 Defense White Paper

plans to improve medical corps at division-level units and below by 2025 as well as improve

support hospitals for forward corps by 2023 through new construction projects, remodeling,
and renovation, selecting the method that best suits the conditions of each unit.

| Enhancing the Accessibility and Convenience of Medical Services | In the past,
servicemembers had to obtain references from medical off icers at military hospitals to use
civilian hospitals. However, the MND plans to allow servicemembers to receive treatment at

civilian hospitals by obtaining references from medical off icers at medical corps at division-
level units and below. In addition, for servicemembers who need to return to military hospitals
for additional treatment, the MND will allow them to book hospital visits on their own and

use public transportations to the hospitals without an off icer’s escort. The MND will also
implement efforts to ensure convenient hospital visits by servicemembers and their family
members and instill a patient-oriented hospital culture comparable to that of civilian hospitals,
including streamlining entry procedures at military hospitals for servicemembers and visitors,

and allowing them to freely enter military hospitals during opening hours.

| Expanding the Medical Expense Support for Career Servicemembers | In cases where
a career servicemember is diseased or injured in the course of his/her off icial duty and decides to
seek treatment at a civilian hospital, the servicemember had to pay for the entire medical expenses
(contribution from the National Health Insurance Corporation and the servicemember).

However, starting in March 2018, under the amended Military Pension Act, the ROK
government is liable for the contribution of the National Health Insurance Program (NHIP).
This amendment is aimed at mitigating the burden on career servicemembers and guaranteeing

their choice of medical services.

| Specializing and Enhancing the Efficiency of Military Hospitals | Despite the continued

efforts to improve the medical capabilities of the military, military healthcare has not been able
to match the speed of advancement in civilian healthcare. For this reason, servicemembers and
the public still regard military healthcare with suspicion, and servicemembers still prefer civilian

hospitals. To address this issue, the MND plans to improve the quality of military healthcare
by “selecting and concentrating” on the specific functions of military hospitals as well as
their eff iciency by, for example, introducing hospitals that specialize in trauma treatment. It

248 Chapter 6 Instilling a High-Morale Military Culture Trusted by the People