Korean hospitals gear up for Southeast Asian expansion

The health ministry is keen to bring its services to a broader spectrum of foreign patients.

Korea’s health ministry is gearing up to bring its local hospitals to international markets, local media reported.

The administration is rolling out a “New Northern Policy” and a “New Southern Policy” to enhance cooperation with Central Asian and Southeast Asian nations in order promote Korean healthcare to foreign patients.

“They have good infrastructure for Korean hospitals to enter or to invite patients back to Korea. By studying them, we will make opportunities for pharmaceuticals, medical device makers, and hospital systems to enter the market together in a package,” said Kim Hye-seon, director general of the ministry’s Global Healthcare Bureau.

Kim added that the administration would continue to support Korean hospitals’ overseas expansion or attraction of foreign patients.

“We should be partners working together to help hospitals enter the global market and bring in international patients. We will work on basic materials for the next two to three years to support them,” she noted.