Editorial: One in five radiologists and orthopedists is trained in another specialty, creating a black hole in essential healthcare

Uncovered medical care is pulling doctors away from essential healthcare and becoming a “black hole” that draws them toward profitable specialties, a Dong-A Ilbo editorial argues.

Data from South Korea’s Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service show that, among 26 medical departments in neighborhood clinics, radiology has the highest share of specialists trained in another field, at 21.2%. Orthopedics follows at 19.3%, and neurosurgery at 18.1%.

Radiology and orthopedics are described as typical specialties centered on uncovered services that offer relatively low risks and high returns. Unlike covered treatment, which the government controls through national health insurance fees and medical-cost reviews, uncovered services allow hospitals and clinics to set prices and treatment frequency themselves.

The editorial says the structure has allowed uncovered care to expand uncontrollably as private indemnity insurance has become widespread. As of March last year, manual therapy ranked first in uncovered medical expenses at 121.3 billion won, followed by extracorporeal shockwave treatment at 75.3 billion won. The cost of tests such as spinal MRI also ranked among the highest.