Korea provides support for initial medical expenses when depression is diagnosed during health checkup

Starting next year, the Korean government will subsidize the patient's initial medical expenses if they are found to be at risk for depression or early psychosis during a mental health test included in the national health checkup.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare plans to raise medical fees for cerebrovascular and abdominal aortic aneurysm surgeries, which are essential medical fields directly linked to the health of the elderly.
The government currently recommends that people aged 20 to 34 undergo mental health screening every two years during their general health check-up, and that people in other age groups undergo mental health screening every 10 years. However,
Only 17.8% of newly discovered mental health risk groups in the screening actually led to treatment. In response, the government has announced that starting next year, mental health screening will be included in national health screening programs to test for depression and premature birth.
If a patient is determined to be at risk for developing a mental illness, the government will cover the cost of the initial consultation only so that they can receive an accurate diagnosis at a medical institution. This will reduce the patient's mental health and medical expenses.
The items covered in the initial consultation fee are consultation fees, testing fees (one type of symptom and behavioral assessment scale test), and consultation fees (one type of individual psychiatric treatment).
"We plan to make it possible for people to receive treatment at a medical institution," he explained. Medical professionals in the field of mental health welcomed the move. Professor Choi Junho of the Department of Mental Health at Hanyang University Hospital said, "The
"The sooner treatment and management is started, the better the prognosis," he said, adding, "We hope to reduce the burden on patients while promoting natural healing."
In response, the government will introduce a system to provide compensation for cerebrovascular surgery such as craniotomy and trepanation, and abdominal surgery from next year, with the aim of strengthening the medical infrastructure through fair compensation in essential medical fields.
The medical fee for aneurysm surgery will be significantly increased. Surgery will be subdivided according to whether or not there is a rupture of the blood vessel, whether or not it is performed in conjunction with lobectomy, and the surgical site, and the relative value points will be increased by up to 2.0 points according to the risk and difficulty.
A government official said, "By strengthening compensation for high-risk and difficult medical procedures, we aim to maintain the human resources and infrastructure in essential medical fields and eliminate gaps in medical care."
We hope to be able to contribute."