Some 8 percent of people in their 30s do not use medical services on time, and only 37 percent of Koreans felt satisfied with their health, a report showed.
Also, younger generations with limited access to medical services showed lower satisfaction with the healthcare system than their older counterparts who benefitted from the government’s comprehensive medical aid policy, according to the report.
The National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences (NRC Korea) recently released a report, “A study on age-integrated living environment indicators of the community to adapt to demographic structural change,” after analyzing the experiences of unmet medical needs, health satisfaction, and approval of improved healthcare service by different age groups and regions.
According to the report, 6.4 percent of Koreans failed to receive the required medical service in the past year. The comparable rate was highest among people in their 30s, with 8.1 percent. Following them was the over-60 group, with 7.2 percent. The lowest was the under-30 group, with 4.5 percent.
By region, Daegu recorded the highest rate of people experiencing unmet medical needs with 11.8 percent, followed by Jeju Province’s 8.4 percent, North Gyeongsang Province’s 7.9 percent, Busan’s 7.8 percent, and Ulsan’s 7.5 percent. Also recording over-average levels were Gyeonggi Province (6.9 percent) and Incheon (6.7 percent). Seoul recorded a below-average rate of 5.9 percent.
People in their 30s showed the highest rate of experiencing unmet medical needs in seven of the 17 provinces and metropolises.
The comparable rates were also highest in Daegu (27.9 percent), followed by Busan (16.9 percent) and Incheon (12.2 percent). Chasing them were Gwangju (11.4 percent) and Jeju Province (11.1 percent). In Ulsan, 13.0 percent of 30-somethings experienced unmet medical needs, with those over 60 marking the highest rate of 14.7 percent.
37 percent of people content with health amid relatively lower rate among economically active population
The share of Koreans satisfied with their health stood at 37.0 percent. People younger than 30 showed the highest subjective satisfaction rate with 57.0 percent, followed by the 30s, who recorded 30.1 percent. That of people aged 40 to 60 was 28.5 percent, and the over-60 group was 25.3 percent.
The subjective health satisfaction rate was highest in Gwangju (42.6 percent), followed by Seoul (40.3 percent). Also recording above-average levels was Gyeonggi Province (38.9 percent), South Chungcheong Province (38.5 percent), and Gangwon Province (37.8 percent). In contrast, only 26.4 percent of Incheon citizens felt satisfied with their health. Also recording below-average rate was Daejeon (27.1 percent) and North Jeolla Province (28.3 percent).
In seven of the 17 local autonomous regions, people aged between 30 to 39 showed a relatively lower subjective health satisfaction rate.
Asked whether they thought the healthcare service quality had improved, 47.2 percent said “yes.” The positive response rate was highest among the over-60 group, with 51.6 percent, followed by the 40-60 group (50.5 percent), 30-39 group (40.1 percent), and under-30 group (38.7 percent).
The approval rate was high in South Jeolla Province (57.2 percent) and Gwangju (57.0 percent), followed by Busan (55.4 percent) and Jeju Province (53.7 percent). In contrast, only 39.7 percent of residents in North Gyeongsang Province replied that the quality of healthcare service is improving. Citizens of Seoul also showed a below-average approval rate of 45.3 percent.
Unlike widespread perception, the self-satisfaction rate of health was low among people in their 30s compared to older adults. Researchers said it might be because of the accumulated experiences of failing to receive medical service on time.
“People in the 30-39 age group are economically most active, making it difficult for them to get medical service on time,” the report said. “We must also pay attention that people aged 60 and older have less access to medical service due to aging and economic reasons.”
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