"Can't Even Pull Off Blanket When Hot"... 'Lonely Death High-Risk Group' Imagined Death

[Anchor]

As solitary deaths of people dying alone increase every year, the government established a response system this year. It is a method of proactively identifying high-risk groups for lonely death by collecting information such as overdue utility bills. The initial analysis results newly confirmed details different from previously known facts.

Reporter Park Ha-jeong has the details.

[Reporter]

Chu Kyung-jin, 58, developed a physical disability due to a traffic accident.

Even daily routines such as getting up from bed and preparing to go out cannot be done without the help of others.

He says that sometimes he suddenly pictures a situation where he passes away.

[Chu Kyung-jin : (When my fever goes up) Since I cannot use my hands, there were times when I couldn't even pull the blanket down and had to wait until my activity assistant arrived. I thought, 'Could I really die like this...?']

Lonely deaths have increased every year, nearing 4,000 in 2024. In response, the government launched a lonely death crisis response system last February.

It proactively identifies high-risk groups for lonely death by collecting 27 types of information, such as overdue electricity bills or health insurance premiums, and reasons for emergency room visits, to determine if they are in a state of social isolation.

As a result, as of last July, the number of people at high risk of lonely death nationwide was tallied at 43,858.

About 33,000 people, or 76%, were people with disabilities, and 93% of those with disabilities had physical disabilities.

By type of economic activity, the unemployed accounted for about 70%, showing a wide gap with the second-highest risk group, temporary and daily workers.

This is the first time that the socio-economic characteristics of the high-risk group for lonely death have been revealed.

Until now, surveys focused on age and gender rather than disability or employment status, leading to the perception that middle-aged and older men in their 50s and 60s are vulnerable to lonely deaths.

[Seo Mi-hwa / Democratic Party lawmaker (National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee) : Policy issues regarding what kind of services the government will provide to people in this high-risk group for lonely death must also be considered. In particular, we need to think about whether to provide customized services for elderly people with physical disabilities....]

The Ministry of Health and Welfare is considering preparing measures to prevent social isolation even for people already within the existing social welfare network, such as people with disabilities.

(Video by Choi Ho-jun and Kim Yong-woo | Video editing by Kim Ho-jin | Design by Lee Ga-jin)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.