Striking SKorean doctors hold rally over virus plan

Thousands of young doctors in South Korea launched a strike and rallied Friday in protest of a government medical policy, raising concerns about the treatment of patients amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The striking doctors are interns and resident doctors, who oppose the government's plan to expand admissions to medical schools to resolve a shortage of doctors in South Korea.

The doctors call the plan "a populist policy" that would waste taxpayers' money and nurture low-quality medical schools. In a statement posted on their website, they accused the government of offering little financial support for their practicing programmes and said that they work with an extremely low salary.

About 70 to 80% of the Korean Intern Resident Association's 16,000 members were taking part in Friday's one-day strike, South Korean media reported.

There were no immediate reports of major disruption of medical services.

During a daily virus briefing Friday, Vice Health Minister Kim Gang-lip said the government viewed the strikes as very regrettable and urged doctors to avoid extreme measures that would cause harms to patients.

Kim said the government has let hospitals put in alternative medical personnel and take other steps to prevent shortages.

(Representative Image)