[Anchor]
The government has officially announced that it will introduce abortion pills. Legal consumption is expected to become possible as early as the first quarter of next year. However, regarding whether parental consent will be required for minors, the government stated it will review the matter further.
Reporter Park Ha-jeong has the details.
[Reporter]
Seven years after the Constitutional Court ruled that punishing abortion was unconstitutional, the government has decided to introduce abortion medication.
Although alternative legislation has still not been enacted, the government stated that it can no longer overlook threats to women's safety and health rights caused by the illegal underground distribution of drugs.
[Han Sung-sook / Prime Minister: To ensure that women in need can receive treatment within a safe medical system rather than relying on unverified methods...]
An application has already been filed for approval in South Korea for a drug with the same active ingredients as "Mifegyne" (mifepristone), an abortion pill permitted in 101 countries worldwide.
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, which has been reviewing the evaluation, stated that it is targeting introduction in the first quarter of next year, taking into consideration the time needed to secure supply volumes.
While the World Health Organization states that abortion pills can be used up to 12 weeks of pregnancy, South Korea plans to permit prescriptions for women within nine weeks of pregnancy.
[Shin Jun-su / Director General for Pharmaceutical Safety, Ministry of Food and Drug Safety: Because (the drug applied for domestically) was clinically tested on patients within nine weeks, based on the clinical trial results...]
Regarding pharmacies, because the criminal punishment for abortion has not been abolished and to further enhance safety, hospitals will both prescribe and dispense the medication for the first two years.
There was no age criterion when the pharmaceutical company applied for approval of the abortion pill.
Consequently, minors are expected to be able to receive prescriptions, though it has not yet been decided whether parental consent will be mandatory for such prescriptions.
The government's stance is that it will carefully review the issue by examining the overall youth protection system and other factors.
[Won Min-kyung / Minister of Gender Equality and Family: In the case of adolescence, we believe special psychological and emotional support will be necessary. We will ensure this is well-reflected in the guidelines...]
Regarding whether national health insurance coverage will be applied, the government stated it would review the matter if the pharmaceutical company applies for it.
Women's groups welcomed the decision as a "meaningful step forward," while asserting that women's accessibility to the medication needs to be further improved, such as by raising the gestational age limit. Meanwhile, religious circles argued that the protection of life must take priority and foreshadowed lawsuits to cancel the drug's approval.
(Photo courtesy of Yonhap News / Reported by Cho Choon-dong, Video Editing by Kim Ho-jin, Graphics by Yeji)
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