Failures and lessons learned from the medical school quota expansion policy under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration
- 1Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
- 2Institutes of Health and Science Convergence, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
- 3Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Chungbuk National University Hospital, Cheongju, Republic of Korea
Abstract
South Korea offers a valuable case for examining why health reforms facing strong physician opposition can produce different outcomes. This commentary compares the 2000 Separation of Drug Prescribing and Dispensing (SPD) with the recent medical school quota expansion using Mark Moore’s public value framework. We assess how public value, the authorizing environment, and operational capacity shaped the trajectories of the two reforms. SPD articulated a clear patient-safety rationale, secured broad political and social authorization, and developed legal, financial, and organizational mechanisms that supported implementation. By contrast, medical school quota expansion combined strong initial public support with contested policy logic, limited stakeholder authorization, and insufficient capacity to expand medical education or direct additional physicians toward underserved specialties and regions. The comparison also shows how earlier policy settlements shaped expectations and bargaining behavior in subsequent reform. Durable health workforce reform therefore requires alignment among public legitimacy, political authorization, and operational capacity.
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BibTeX
@article{kim2026failures,
title = {{Failures and lessons learned from the medical school quota expansion policy under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration}},
author = {Yu Jin Kim and So Young Kim and Jong Hyock Park},
journal = {Frontiers in Public Health},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fpubh.2026.1971516},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1971516},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Failures and lessons learned from the medical school quota expansion policy under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration
AU - Yu Jin Kim
AU - So Young Kim
AU - Jong Hyock Park
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/12
JO - Frontiers in Public Health
DO - 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1971516
UR - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1971516
AB - South Korea offers a valuable case for examining why health reforms facing strong physician opposition can produce different outcomes. This commentary compares the 2000 Separation of Drug Prescribing and Dispensing (SPD) with the recent medical school quota expansion using Mark Moore’s public value framework. We assess how public value, the authorizing environment, and operational capacity shaped the trajectories of the two reforms. SPD articulated a clear patient-safety rationale, secured broad political and social authorization, and developed legal, financial, and organizational mechanisms that supported implementation. By contrast, medical school quota expansion combined strong initial public support with contested policy logic, limited stakeholder authorization, and insufficient capacity to expand medical education or direct additional physicians toward underserved specialties and regions. The comparison also shows how earlier policy settlements shaped expectations and bargaining behavior in subsequent reform. Durable health workforce reform therefore requires alignment among public legitimacy, political authorization, and operational capacity.
SN - 2296-2565
ER -