It is wrong to threaten strike over medical license issue
With just days before the start of nationwide COVID-19 vaccinations, doctors have threatened to strike to protest a bill which makes it easier to cancel medical licenses. In a statement Saturday, the Korean Medical Association (KMA) expressed its opposition to an amendment to the Medical Services Act that can strip doctors of their licenses if they commit serious crimes and receive jail terms. The previous day, lawmakers on the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee approved and forwarded the revision bill.
“If the bill backed by the government and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) passes the Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee, we will initiate a strike,” the KMA said, even hinting at boycotting the country's coronavirus vaccinations that will start Friday. According to the revision, a doctor sentenced to imprisonment after being found guilty of crimes such as murder, robbery and sexual assault will be stripped of their license for five years after being released from jail.
The bill is designed to require medical practitioners to maintain a high level of professional ethics and social responsibility. The current law stipulates that medical licenses should be revoked only when doctors are sentenced to imprisonment for violating the Medical Services Act. Given that other professionals, including lawyers, are deprived of their licenses if they are imprisoned for committing a serious crime, the bill appears to be the right way forward. Yet it is questionable why the revision is being pushed at this time when the nation should work together to carry out vaccinations successfully.
One can figure out doctors' concern about losing their licenses for issues unrelated to their jobs. But it's wrong for them to hold the public hostage by refusing to cooperate in inoculations. The most important thing is protecting the health and safety of the people. Doctors should refrain from selfish behavior in their efforts to scrap the revision bill. The ruling party and the government, for their part, should endeavor to persuade doctors to embrace the revision through dialogue.