Health ministry moves to penalize 33 unaccredited nursing hospitals

The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Tuesday it will take legal action against 33 nursing hospitals that have applied for accreditation but refused to cooperate with inspections or have repeatedly failed to obtain certification. The facilities face correction orders and, if they remain noncompliant, suspension of operations or fines of up to 5 million won ($3,681) under the Medical Service Act.

The move targets a pattern the ministry said it has identified: filing an accreditation application, then declining to take part in the on-site survey, or reapplying only to be rejected again. One nursing hospital first applied in 2017 and was denied accreditation, then applied or reapplied seven times in total. Six of those attempts ended without the hospital undergoing an inspection.

Nursing hospitals have been required to apply for accreditation since 2013, under Article 58-3 of the Medical Service Act. Hospitals that receive conditional accreditation, are denied accreditation or have their accreditation revoked must reapply within 90 days.

The ministry said it will verify whether a hospital actually took part in the survey and honored its reapplication duty, and will demand that institutions failing to meet the legal requirements complete the process promptly.

"The medical institution accreditation system is a basic system for securing patient safety and the quality of medical services at nursing hospitals," said Kwak Soon-heon, director general for health and medical policy at the ministry. "We will respond strictly to institutions that continue not to fulfill their legal obligations."