In February 2016, South Korean lawmakers passed an amendment that allows the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) to collect damages from pharmaceutical and medical device companies that violated data reporting guidelines. Under this new amendment, the NHIS can collect insurance losses from... Read More
This article was also published on MedTech Intelligence. Telemedicine connects doctors with patients who are unable to travel or live in rural areas. While it was once considered expensive and unconventional, the rapid spread of affordable technology has made telemedicine an increasingly attractive... Read More
A recent report from the World Health Organization (WHO) reveals that childhood obesity is a growing problem in Asia. According to the report, in 2014, 48% of the world’s overweight children (5 years old or younger) were living in Asia. In high... Read More
As of December 26, 2015, the Korean Constitutional Court (as the highest court in Korea) has declared unconstitutional provisions of the Korean medical advertisement regulation policy. The court issued two rulings on provisions falling under the Medical Services Act. The Court first... Read More
Korean regulatory authorities have recently begun a pilot program that will simplify the medical device registration process. Under this new program, medical device companies whose products meet the pilot program conditions can submit a single application to the Korean Ministry of Food... Read More
This article was also published on MedTech Intelligence. A new trend is emerging in Asia as diseases that were once considered “Western” are increasingly found in wealthy countries such as Japan and South Korea, as well as places with growing wealth like China.... Read More
South Korea and Japan continue to take top spots in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) annual rankings of average life expectancy. Japan leads the list with an average life expectancy of 83.4 years while South Korea has the 12th... Read More
This article was also published on MedTech Intelligence. As economies around the world struggle for growth, countries in Asia are riding the wave of one of the world’s fastest growing industries—medical tourism. Industry growth rates in the region are hovering around 25%, according... Read More
This article was also published on MedTech Intelligence. Wearable electronic devices such as Apple’s iWatch or the Fitbit have become ubiquitous in advanced economies in the West, and they are catching up in Asia. Wearable medical devices such as electronic cardiogram skin patches,... Read More
In September, the World Economic Forum (WEF) released its highly anticipated 2015-2016 Global Competitiveness Index. The Index is based on the policies, institutions, and other factors that influence a nation’s productivity and relative level of prosperity. The World Economic Forum looks at... Read More