Last year, total healthcare spending in South Korea surpassed 216 trillion won, with per capita expenditure reaching approximately 4.18 million won. The proportion of healthcare spending relative to the country's GDP remained steady at 8.5%. While about 60% of total healthcare costs were covered by public funding, households bore over 30% of the expenses directly.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) announced on September 22 that the "2024 National Health Accounts" report, which calculates healthcare spending by funding source, provider, and function, has been published. The National Health Accounts are compiled according to the international standard 'SHA 2011 (System of Health Accounts 2011)' and serve as a comparative resource among OECD member countries.
According to the National Health Accounts, South Korea's healthcare spending for 2024 is estimated at 216.6 trillion won, reflecting a 6.5% increase from the previous year's 203.4 trillion won. The share of healthcare spending relative to GDP remains at 8.5%, consistent with the previous year. Per capita healthcare expenditure rose to 4.186 million won, up 5.6% from 3.963 million won in the prior year.
Healthcare spending has shown a steady increase over the past five years, with an average annual growth rate of 7.0% from 2020 to 2024, outpacing the average GDP growth rate of 5.6% during the same period.
In terms of funding sources, public resources, which include government and mandatory health insurance, accounted for 59.7% of the total, amounting to 129.4 trillion won. Among these, mandatory health insurance and long-term care insurance made up 106.6 trillion won (49.2%), while government spending related to COVID-19 response decreased to 22.8 trillion won (10.5%), down 2.3% from the previous year.
Private funding totaled 87.2 trillion won (40.3%), with direct household spending on healthcare services at 67.2 trillion won (31.0%). Expenditures through voluntary insurance schemes, such as private health insurance, reached 20 trillion won (9.2%).
By function, spending on outpatient services, which includes visits to local clinics and outpatient care, was the largest at 69.1 trillion won (31.9%). This was followed by inpatient services at 52.5 trillion won (24.2%) and medical goods, including pharmaceuticals, at 46.2 trillion won (21.3%). Due to the aging population, spending on long-term care services reached 28.5 trillion won, accounting for 13.2% of total healthcare expenditure.
In terms of provider revenue, hospitals, including general hospitals and nursing hospitals, generated 90.1 trillion won, representing 41.6% of the total. Outpatient healthcare providers, such as clinics and traditional medicine practitioners, accounted for 66.7 trillion won (30.8%), while pharmacies contributed 30.2 trillion won (14.0%). Notably, spending at outpatient clinics increased by 10.0% compared to the previous year, marking the highest growth among major providers.
The NHIS stated, "This statistic has undergone a validation process involving an external expert committee from data collection to calculation to enhance its credibility." Related materials can be found on the Ministry of Health and Welfare's website.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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