Radiology specialists are strongly opposing the government's plan to ease staffing requirements for MRI equipment at medical facilities, calling it "hasty administration that threatens public health."
The Korean Society of Radiology, Korean Association of Radiology Practitioners, and Korean Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine held an emergency seminar on May 10 at the Korean Society of Radiology building in Seocho-gu, Seoul. The three organizations criticized point by point the potential side effects of the proposed revision to special medical equipment regulations.
The controversy stems from the Ministry of Health and Welfare's legislative notice on May 6 proposing amendments to the "Rules on Installation and Operation of Special Medical Equipment." The revision would relax requirements for dedicated radiology specialists at MRI-operating medical institutions. Current rules require a dedicated radiology specialist working at least 32 hours over four days per week. The proposed amendment would allow non-dedicated specialists working just one day per week for eight hours or more.
The ministry's rationale centers on improving MRI access for patients in medically underserved areas. Growing demand for MRI examinations has made it increasingly difficult to recruit radiology specialists, leaving some facilities in underserved regions unable to operate their MRI equipment at all.
Medical professionals warn that entrusting MRI management to so-called "part-time" doctors working once weekly will inevitably degrade imaging quality. According to the societies, MRI differs fundamentally from CT scans or X-rays. The imaging process is highly complex, and image quality varies significantly depending on equipment characteristics. Daily verification is needed to confirm proper equipment function and diagnostic-quality images. Reviewing hundreds of MRI images accumulated over a week during a single visit is physically impossible, they argue.
Such management gaps could increase misdiagnosis rates and unnecessary repeat examinations, potentially wasting national health insurance funds.
"MRI is an examination where diagnostic value is only secured when protocol design, equipment management, and professional interpretation work together," said Chung Seung-eun, President of the Korean Society of Radiology and professor of radiology at Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital. "Image quality directly determines diagnostic accuracy, which directly affects patient treatment outcomes and public health."
Concerns also emerged that the policy could backfire despite its aim to introduce MRI to more regional hospitals. Critics warn the relaxed standards could encourage "license lending," where Seoul-area specialists register their names at multiple regional hospitals without actually working there.
"In Korea, where private hospitals dominate, MRI purchases will clearly concentrate in urban areas with profit potential," said Lee Sang-hoon, President of the Korean Society of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine and professor of radiology at Asan Medical Center in Seoul. "The policy's very purpose of addressing medically underserved areas could be undermined."
Following the seminar, the organizations officially launched the "Special Medical Equipment Countermeasures Committee" and called for a change in the government's position. As alternatives, they proposed raising the minimum requirement for non-dedicated specialists to at least two days and 16 hours per week, implementing the policy first in medically underserved and non-metropolitan areas, and postponing staffing changes until ongoing facility standard reforms are finalized. They also called for quality management incentives through differentiated reimbursement rates based on image quality levels.
"Medical imaging equipment quality management is a core clinical practice for radiology specialists and a mission we cannot abandon for public health," said Do Kyung-hyun, incoming President of the Korean Society of Radiology, professor of radiology at Asan Medical Center in Seoul, and co-representative of the committee. "We will continue comprehensive responses to protect special medical equipment quality management, including protest visits to the Ministry of Health and Welfare and public awareness campaigns."
Opposition is also mounting in the legislative notice's online public hearing. Approximately 700 comments have been posted expressing concerns, including: "I understand the doctor shortage, but MRI is an examination where accuracy matters, so lowering standards this much is worrying" and "Accessibility is important, but reducing specialist working hours so drastically makes me worry whether examinations will be done properly." The public comment period runs through May 18.
