Jung Ki-hyun Tapped to Lead Public Healthcare Reform Committee

Jung Ki-hyun, former head of the National Medical Center (NMC), has been named to chair the inaugural "Public Participation Medical Innovation Committee," which will spearhead healthcare reform under the Lee Jae-myung administration.

According to government and medical industry sources Tuesday, the innovation committee will hold its first meeting this week to officially launch. The committee aims to strengthen regional, essential, and public healthcare through participation from healthcare service users—the general public.

Jung, a public healthcare expert, served as NMC director from 2018 to 2022 during the Moon Jae-in administration. Born in 1956, he graduated from Jeonbuk National University's medical school and specialized in pediatrics. He previously served as director of Hyundai Women and Children's Hospital, a mid-sized hospital in Suncheon, South Jeolla Province. Jung has been active in public health civic activities in regional areas, serving roles including chairman of the Naeil Medical Foundation. He also founded the "Together Forum" in 2017 when former President Moon was leader of the Democratic Party.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced in September that it would establish the innovation committee under the Prime Minister's office, comprising a main committee of up to 30 members including private sector representatives, an expert committee, and a medical innovation task force. The committee will replace the Medical Reform Special Committee created under the previous administration and address the current government's key agenda items on strengthening regional, essential, and public healthcare—including issues such as "pediatric clinic rush" and "emergency room runaround."

The committee was originally scheduled to launch in November after establishing a presidential directive in October and requesting committee member nominations from various sectors, but the timeline was delayed. Minister of Health and Welfare Jung Eun-kyung said at a year-end press conference on January 1 that "once the Medical Innovation Committee launches this month, it will discuss overall healthcare reform tasks from a long-term perspective."