South Korea simplifies re-registration for rare disease patients
Summary and headline written by AI from the source article. How we work
The National Health Insurance Service of South Korea will simplify the re-registration process for patients with rare and serious illnesses, starting September 14th.
Previously, patients needing to renew their special calculation status after five years had to submit diagnostic test results. Now, the agency will allow re-registration based on clinical diagnoses and treatment history for those with conditions where a cure is unlikely. The agency initially applied the revised criteria to nine rare diseases in January.
As of September 1st, the change expanded to include 95 diseases, such as Kennedy disease. They plan to further improve the re-registration criteria for an additional 146 diseases in the coming year, including Nelder’s syndrome. This change stems from the “Stage 1 Innovation Plan for National Health Insurance Coverage” announced by the Ministry of Health and Welfare on September 8th.
Kang Cheong-hee, the head of the National Health Insurance Service, stated the revised standards will reduce the burden of diagnostic tests and allow patients to receive necessary treatment and care more reliably.
