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| Lee Pil-soo, president of the Korea Medical Association (KMA), criticizes the passage of a bill legislating the Nursing Act during a press conference held in front of the KMA building in Yongsan District, Thursday. Yonhap |
Medical workers except nurses threaten to go on general strike
By Jun Ji-hye
President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing pressure from doctors and medical workers, especially nursing assistants, to veto the legislation of the Nursing Act. Divisions within the medical community have deepened following the act's controversial approval on Thursday in the opposition-controlled National Assembly.
A coalition of 13 medical workers' organizations including the Korea Medical Association (KMA) ― comprised of doctors ― expressed "deep anger and regret" over the passage of the bill, threatening to go on strike, if the president does not exercise his veto power.
Independent from the Medical Services Act, the Nursing Act is designed to clarify the scope of nurses' duties and improve their working conditions. Nurses have long complained about ambiguities in their roles and duties as stipulated in the Medical Services Act that they claim have increased their workload.
While the bill has been welcomed by nurses and backed by the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), which controls more than half of the 300-seat Assembly, it has faced opposition from other medical workers and the ruling People Power Party (PPP) claiming that it favors a certain group and could deepen existing conflicts within the medical community.
The doctors' group raised concerns that the law would allow nurses to intervene in the duties of physicians, while nursing assistants claimed they could suffer discrimination.
Despite fierce opposition from the PPP and doctors, the bill was approved in the Assembly's plenary session by the opposition party, while PPP members boycotted the vote and walked out before voting began.
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| Members of the Korean Nurses Association cry while listening to lawmakers' arguments for and against the Nursing Act during a plenary session of the National Assembly, Thursday. The bill legislating the Nursing Act was passed later in the day by the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea. Yonhap |
After the bill was passed, the coalition of 13 organizations issued a statement, saying, "We will begin a partial strike next week," adding that it is coordinating the timing of a full strike.
As the coalition is comprised of not only the doctors' group but also the Korean Licensed Practical Nurses Association, the Korean Association of Medical Technologists and the Korean Association of Emergency Medical Technician, among others, their general strike could potentially paralyze the country's health care system.
Still, the coalition is paying keen attention to whether President Yoon will exercise his veto power, before deciding on the timing of their strike, as the PPP vowed to ask the president to do so.
The Constitution allows the president to veto a bill within 15 days after its passage in the Assembly.
If President Yoon vetoes the bill, which will become his second veto since taking office, the country may avoid the worst-case scenario of the strike, but in this case, the Korean Nurses Association is likely to protest.
The president exercised his first veto power earlier this month against a contentious bill requiring a government purchase of surplus rice. The Assembly held a revote to override the presidential veto, but fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to do so.
The nurses' association has already issued a statement opposing the potential presidential veto. "We ask President Yoon Suk Yeol to make a wise decision after looking into all related facts," it said.
Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong expressed his regret over the passage of the bill, raising concerns that conflicts between medical workers could lead to chaos in the country's health care system.
Bracing for the possible chaos, the Ministry of Health and Welfare formed an emergency team in charge of monitoring any trouble to be caused by a medical workers' strike.
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