Hair loss should be under greater national health insurance coverage: South Korean President Lee

SEOUL – South Korean President Lee Jae Myung asked the government to review the possibility of covering treatment for hereditary hair loss under the mandatory national health insurance during a live-streamed year-end policy briefing on Dec 16.

He said that treating hair loss is regarded by some among the younger generation as “a matter of survival”, adding that bringing such treatments under state health coverage should be considered.

When questioned on the issue, Health Minister Jeong Eun-kyeong said that treatments for hair loss arising from medical conditions are covered.

But hereditary hair loss is not, as the condition is not considered to have symptoms or a life-threatening impact.

“It seems to me that you are claiming (that) baldness due to hereditary causes is not a disease and therefore cannot be covered (by the national health insurance). But is it just a matter of whether to define hereditary disease as a disease?” Mr Lee said.

“Back then, medical services for baldness were regarded as ones for cosmetic purposes, but nowadays, these are regarded as a matter of survival,” he added, in response to Ms Jeong’s stance that hair loss is not considered a life-threatening illness.

Mr Lee suggested that limiting the number of insurance coverages a beneficiary can claim for hair loss could be a way to ease the financial burden on the state-backed mandatory national health insurance system.

The same could apply to other services for diseases such as obesity, as South Korea has provided insurance coverage for the surgical reduction of the stomach, and Mr Lee’s remarks implied that drug treatment should also be under such coverage.

“More young people are increasingly ostracised,” he said, claiming that fewer people in the younger generation believe they are beneficiaries of government monetary support for the medical services they require. THE KOREA HERALD/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK