Some medical organizations join bipartisan consultative body amid system collapse

[Anchor]

Two medical organizations, including the Korean Academy of Medical Sciences, have announced that they cannot overlook the collapse of the medical system and will participate in the bipartisan legislative consultative body for the first time.

Residents and medical students have made it clear that they will still not participate in the consultative body.

This is a report by reporter Joo Hyun-ji.

[Report]

The Korean Academy of Medical Sciences, an academic organization in the medical field, and the Korea Association of Medical Colleges have decided to participate in the 'Bipartisan Legislative Consultative Body.'

This is the first time a medical organization has expressed its intention to participate, about a month after the proposal from the political sector.

The two organizations stated, "We can no longer overlook the collapse of the medical system caused by wrong policy decisions."

[Lee Jin-woo/President of the Korean Academy of Medical Sciences: "In a situation where there is no sign of resolution and no hope, various wrong policies are being implemented in the medical field. We want to participate in the consultative body to correct these issues...."]

They presented five principles for participation, including the approval of medical students' leaves of absence and discussions on medical school enrollment for the 2025 academic year.

In particular, they emphasized that the approval of leaves of absence is a strong prerequisite.

[Lee Jong-tae/Chairman of the Korea Association of Medical Colleges: "Since students may face expulsion or being held back, this issue (approval of leaves of absence) is also a prerequisite for moving forward with the bipartisan legislative consultative body."]

The ruling and opposition parties, as well as the government, welcomed the decision of the two organizations and are hastening preparations for the launch of the consultative body.

However, there were mixed opinions from the medical organizations that have consistently expressed their intention not to participate.

There are skeptical views on whether participation would be effective given that the government's stance on increasing medical school enrollment remains unchanged.

First, the Korean Medical Association stated that it respects the decisions of the two organizations but will not participate in the consultative body at this time, while the positions of medical professors' organizations were divided.

The groups of residents and medical students, which are at the core of the conflict, dismissed the idea of participating in what they called a "facade consultative body" through social media.

This is KBS News, Joo Hyun-ji.