The ruling party on Thursday hinted at abandoning President Yoon Suk Yeol's flagship policy that has aimed to increase the annual admission quota for medical students by 2,000 to tackle the country's shortage of health care professionals, on the premise that students return to the classroom.
This followed a proposal from a group of teaching hospitals to reduce the medical school admission quota to 3,058 per year, reversing the Yoon administration's push to expand it to 5,058 despite strong opposition from the medical community.
Rep. Kweon Seong-dong, floor leader of the ruling People Power Party, said he found the proposal by teaching hospitals "appropriate."
If the government accepts their proposal, universities with teaching hospitals will admit 3,058 students starting 2026, like they did in 2024.
Since Feburary 2024, Yoon has pushed ahead with plans to increase the medical student quota by 2,000 to 5,058, triggering backlash from medical students and fledgling doctors. Yoon's plan came into effect for student enrollments for the academic year of 2025. Yoon is currently under arrest for alleged insurrection in the aftermath of his martial law imposition on Dec. 3, 2024.
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