SEOUL (SOUTH KOREA) – The Korean Medical Association (KMA), the largest grouping of doctors, said it would go on strike if parliament passed the bill to revoke the licences of doctors getting jail terms. The announcement has sparked fears about possible disruption of a COVID-19 vaccination effort set to begin this week.
“The bill might result in ordinary, innocent doctors being stripped of their licences and falling into hell because of an accident that has nothing to do with their job, or lack of legal knowledge,” spokesman Kim Dae-ha said in a statement on Monday.
Association president Choi Dae-zip has called the bill “cruel”, saying its passage into law would “destroy” current cooperation with the government to treat the virus and carry out the vaccine campaign.
With healthcare workers scheduled to receive the first batch of AstraZeneca’s vaccine from Friday, concerns are rife that any strike of doctors could slow the rollout of vaccine, especially at a time when authorities are scrambling to allocate medical personnel to about 250 inoculation centres and 10,000 clinics nationwide.
South Korea looks to protect 10 million high-risk people by July, on its way to reaching herd immunity by November.
Parliament has been seeking to revise the Medical Service Act to ban physicians guilty of violent crimes, such as sexual abuse and murder, from practicing their skills.
Ruling party lawmakers pushing for the bill denounced the association, saying it was trying to “take public health hostage to maintain impunity from heinous crimes”.
Last week, a government poll showed almost 94% of 367,000 healthcare workers aged 64 or younger in priority groups said they were ready to take the AstraZeneca vaccine, despite concerns over its efficacy in older people. About 95% said they would accept Pfizer products.
South Korea reported 332 new virus infections by Sunday, taking its tally to 87,324, and a death toll of 1,562.