Weekly doctor visits to get a month's supply of medication? Medical groups call for scrapping prescription-day limits

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"Clinic-level medical institutions participating in non-face-to-face medical care account for less than 7% of the total. Since most patients must receive non-face-to-face care from a medical institution other than their regular one, they are largely classified as first-time visitors. If prescription days for first-time visits are limited to seven days by default, access to healthcare will inevitably decline significantly. Furthermore, to receive a 30-day supply of medication, patients would have to undergo multiple consultations, which could actually increase the financial burden of medical costs."

Sun Jae-won, TIA Gong Dong-hyeop-ui (Chairman) (Co-CEO of Meraki Place), pointed out at a press conference held on the 22nd regarding the government's revised enforcement rules for the Medical Service Act related to non-face-to-face care, stating, "The number of prescription days should be left to the professional judgment of medical staff."

According to the revised draft announced by the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the 19th, to be recognized as a returning patient, one must meet all three criteria: △ receiving face-to-face care at the same medical institution △ within the past six months, and △ being treated for the same symptoms. If any one of these conditions is not met, the visit is classified as a first-time consultation.

In response, the TIA argued that because few medical institutions participate in non-face-to-face care, most patients are inevitably classified as first-time visitors. According to materials presented by Association President Sun, among approximately 72,000 clinic-level medical institutions nationwide, only about 5,000 provide non-face-to-face care, accounting for less than 7% of the total. The association explained that if a patient's regular medical institution does not offer non-face-to-face services, they must use another institution, which is highly likely to be classified as a first-time visit.

Additionally, under the revised draft, the regions where patients can receive first-time non-face-to-face care are limited by default to the same city or province as their registered address, which could further narrow the choice of medical institutions. In particular, Association President Sun stated, "We have determined that in nine cities and provinces nationwide, the average number of clinics available for booking non-face-to-face care on weekday nights is less than one."

In particular, the TIA expressed deep concern that the regulation allowing the 30th-day prescription exception only once is difficult to implement in actual medical practice. This is because medical institutions or non-face-to-face care intermediary platforms lack appropriate means to verify whether a patient has already received an exception at another medical institution. The non-face-to-face care support system, which would allow verification of such information, is scheduled to be introduced in 2028, meaning a gap of approximately one year will occur after the implementation of the non-face-to-face care system.

This could also increase the burden on patients requiring long-term prescriptions, such as for hypertension medication. If consultation and prescription history can be verified, a maximum of 30 days' worth of medication can be prescribed at once. However, if face-to-face care is not received thereafter and the first-time visit criteria continue to apply, prescriptions must again be limited to within seven days. Consequently, the number of consultations and cost burden for chronic disease patients who need to take medication consistently will inevitably increase.

In response, the TIA demanded that instead of abolishing the one-time limit on 30-day prescriptions, safety measures should be established centered on medical staff judgment and verification of consultation information. Association President Sun said, "We are not demanding a specific number of prescription days, whether it be 30, 60, or 90 days. We are asking that medical staff be allowed to determine the number of prescription days by considering the patient's condition and treatment history." He added, "Instead of removing frequency limits, safety should be ensured by mandating the recording of prescription grounds and the transmission of related information."

Overseas, non-face-to-face prescriptions are also managed centered on medical staff judgment and verification of patient consultation information. According to the TIA, Japan limits the number of prescription days for first-time non-face-to-face care to seven days by default, but does not apply this limit if the patient's condition and medication history can be verified through consultation records or copies of prescriptions. The United Kingdom does not impose a separate uniform limit on prescription days for non-face-to-face care.

Lee Ho-ik, CEO of SolDoc, emphasized that non-face-to-face care could become not just an alternative but the only realistic option for elderly people with mobility issues and chronic disease patients. Lee (CEO) stated, "There are many patients who find it difficult to seek treatment anywhere other than university hospitals, such as those with severe diabetes including Type 1 diabetes, chronic disease patients, and those with rare and intractable diseases." He added, "Through primary care medical institutions equipped with sufficient education and clinical experience, patients can receive prescriptions via non-face-to-face care and continue treatments that were interrupted. It is a means to resolve part of the routine consultations concentrated at university hospitals at local medical institutions."

He continued, "The biggest obstacle for these patients is precisely the limit on prescription frequency," pointing out, "If patients who previously received face-to-face care and used non-face-to-face care when needed must undergo multiple consultations to receive a prescription for the same medication, not only will the patient's out-of-pocket expenses increase, but also health insurance fiscal expenditures."

Jang Young-ju, CEO of GoodDoc, said, "We ask that you supplement the enforcement rules once again so that doctors, who are experts with long-term education and clinical experience, can directly judge whether face-to-face care is needed and how many prescription days are required by reviewing patients' consultation records and current condition."

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to finalize the revised draft after gathering opinions from the public and relevant institutions until the 9th of next month. The TIA, under the Korea Startup Forum, is an industry association body in which 16 non-face-to-face care and digital healthcare companies participate, including Doctor Now, Meraki Place (service name: My Doctor), GoodDoc, and SolDoc. Among these, five companies operate non-face-to-face care platforms.

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