49 hospitals given patient visa go-ahead

The Ministry of Justice said Tuesday that 49 hospitals and clinics would be allowed to apply for foreign patient visas as they have been certified as safe, exemplary medical facilities for patients from overseas.

Foreign patients who wish to be treated at the designated facilities, as well as those who accompany the patients to care for them during the recovery process, do not need to apply for visas before entering South Korea.

This will “boost the sales of South Korea’s medical industry, while ensuring the safety of foreign patients by blocking them from unregistered or illegal facilities,” the ministry said in a statement.

Once the clinics apply for the visas on their behalf, the patients will be given a special number that can be used to automatically receive an e-visa.

The ministry certified 29 hospitals as such facilities on Tuesday, following the designation of 20 other hospitals in September.

The certified clinics and hospitals include the Catholic University of Korea’s Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, Konkuk University Medical Center, Wonjin Aesthetic Surgery Clinic and Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital.

According to the Health Ministry, more than 210,000 foreigners from 191 countries were treated in Korean medical institutions last year, generating a revenue of nearly 393 billion won ($384 million). The number marked a 36.9 percent increase from 2012.

The largest numbers of patients came from China, the U.S. and Russia.

Most of the Chinese patients visited cosmetic surgeons and dermatologists here, while many Russians were treated by Korean gynecologists and general physicians.

Chinese patients brought the most money into Korea’s medical industry in 2013, spending 101.6 billion won. Patients from Russia spent the second-largest amount at 87.9 billion won.

Some 630,000 patients from overseas visited Korean medical facilities from 2009 to 2013, spending some 1 trillion won.

For the full list of the 49 designated hospitals, visit www.hikorea.go.kr.

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)