Announcement of 「New Bio-Health Industry Regulation Innovation Plan」
□ On Thursday, March 2, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, led by Minister Cho KyooHong, announced the New Bio-Health Industry Regulation Innovation Plan at the Third Regulatory Innovation Strategy Meeting (presided over by the prime minister).
○ The Plan comes on the heels of the strategies for creating new bio-health markets announced at the interdepartmental meeting held on February 28. The government is seeking innovation of bio-health regulation to create the foundation needed for S. Korea to grow into a global digital and bio healthcare leader.
□ The bio-health industry is a promising new industry owing to its potential for rapid growth*, given the aging population trend worldwide and a rising global need for good healthcare. Its importance also prioritizes the health security domain which involves vaccines and other treatments needed to protect people's lives, health, and safety.
* The Korea Health Industry Development Institute predicts the global bio-health market will grow at an annual average of 5.4% until 2027
○ Korea’s bio-health industry has made significant achievements over the years, including developing the world's second-largest capacity to produce bio-pharmaceuticals, but the global bio-health market* is so vast that there is still massive room for growth of the domestic bio-health industry.
* In 2021, the Korean pharmaceutical market and medical device market tallied a mere 1.7% and 1.8%, respectively, of the sizes of their global counterparts (Korea Health Industry Development Institute)
○ Through interdepartmental cooperation, the Ministry of Health and Welfare will pursue regulatory innovation in the following seven core areas* of bio-health emphasized for their importance in protecting public health and promotion of innovation by the private sector.
* ① Innovative medical devices, ② Innovative and essential pharmaceuticals, ③ Digital health care, ④ Advanced regenerative medicine and advanced bio-pharmaceuticals, ⑤ DNA tests ⑥ Brain-machine interface, ⑦ Infrastructure
