Do foreigners have to join Korea's national health insurance? Cost and benefits?
I've been in Korea for a few months and a health insurance bill arrived at my home. I'm not sure whether foreigners are required to join the National Health Insurance or how the premium is calculated. I'd like to know how much hospital costs are reduced, and whether dental care and health checkups are included.
1 Answer
Yes, foreigners staying in Korea for six months or more are required to join the National Health Insurance, as a workplace subscriber if employed or otherwise as a regional subscriber, which is why you got that bill. When I was employed, the company split the premium with me and it came out of my paycheck; as a regional subscriber it's based on income and assets, but foreigners have a minimum-premium floor, so it's often around 140,000 won a month. Once enrolled, the insurance covers a large part of clinic and hospital fees, so you typically pay only about 30%, and it applies to hospitalization, surgery, and prescriptions too, so your real costs drop a lot. Cosmetic procedures and some non-covered items are excluded, and dental covers fillings and extractions but not things like implants or braces. If you're a regional subscriber over 20, you also get a free national health checkup every two years. For specifics, call the NHIS at 1577-1000; they have foreign-language support.