Distribution of medical expenses in South Korea 2022, by health insurance type

In 2022, the South Korean government's public health insurance program National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) made up around 63 percent of the total medical expenditure that year. The remaining 37 percent of medical costs were taken on by private insurance companies. The NHIS has taken on a slowly increasing share of the total medical expenses.

Medical expenditure in South Korea

In 2022, South Korea’s total national medical expenditure amounted to about 102.4 trillion South Korean won. Both total and per capita spending have risen over the past decade, further leading to increases in premiums. The NHIS is a compulsory universal health insurance scheme run by the government and is financed by a payroll tax. It covers roughly 68 percent of hospital inpatient costs.

The role of private health insurance in South Korea

With the NHIS only covering part of the insured’s medical costs, it is common in South Korea to pay for additional private health insurance. As this represents an additional cost on top of NHIS premiums, the share of households covered and the extent of personal health coverage varies by income. On average, privately insured households held 4.88 private health insurance subscriptions. In comparison, low-income households only had 2.55 subscriptions on average.