South Korean medical institutions are accelerating their expansion overseas, with China becoming the largest target market.
According to a report by South Korea's Asia Daily on January 6, in recent years, South Korean medical institutions have accelerated their expansion into overseas markets, with dermatology and plastic surgery institutions being the main players going global. Data released by the Korea Health Industry Development Institute on the 6th showed that from 2016 to 2024, South Korean medical institutions filed a total of 249 applications for overseas expansion, an increase of about 21% compared with nine years ago. Since 2016, the South Korean government has implemented the Medical Overseas Expansion Act, which stipulates that medical institutions must report to the government when establishing or operating institutions overseas, dispatching medical staff, and exporting medical technology and information systems.
In terms of the annual trend, the number of countries and regions involved in the overseas expansion of South Korean medical institutions increased from 7 in 2016 to 15 in 2024, with an average annual growth rate of 20.7%. In terms of national distribution, China leads with 80 cases, followed by Vietnam, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, the United States, etc. Emerging Asian markets remain the main direction for the overseas expansion of South Korean medical institutions.
In terms of medical specialties, there were 105 cases in dermatology and plastic surgery, accounting for nearly half. Next were dentistry, general medicine, traditional Chinese medicine and other fields. In terms of expansion methods, setting up medical institutions overseas accounted for the largest proportion, followed by operational consulting and the dispatch of medical staff. The proportion of overseas establishments declined during the COVID-19 pandemic, but as the pandemic entered the endemic stage, this proportion rebounded to 66.7% from 2023 to 2024. The Korea Health Industry Development Institute said that a systematic analysis of overseas expansion trends will help enhance the overall competitiveness of South Korean medical service exports. (Economic and Trade Window of the Consulate-General in Busan)
