The South Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare announced on October 17 that as hospital operations gradually stabilize, the government will resolve the highest-level crisis of the medical system on October 19.

South Korea's Minister of Health and Welfare Chung Eun Kyung announced on the same day that with the return of most interns and residents this year, the medical system has "stabilized" and the medical system crisis will be lifted at midnight on the 19th.

Zheng Yinjing said that the medical system has basically recovered to 95% of the normal operating level, and the emergency and intensive care capacity has almost recovered to the pre-crisis level.

As the highest level of crisis is resolved, the South Korean government will also stop operating the emergency medical system.The system draws about 200 billion yuan (about 1 billion yuan) a month from the National Health Insurance Fund to temporarily increase medical spending and maintain basic health services.

In February 2024, the South Korean government issued a plan to expand medical school enrollment, deciding to increase college medical school enrollment by about 2,000 per year within five years starting in 2025 to solve the medical shortage. The South Korean medical community strongly opposed this enrollment plan, saying the move would trigger problems such as over-medication. Hundreds of thousands of trainees and hospitalized doctors submitted resignations and strikes, causing chaos in the operation of medical institutions. The South Korean government subsequently raised the national health system crisis level to the highest level of "serious".

In April this year, the South Korean government softened its stance by announcing that the number of enrollments will be restored to the level before the school year 2026, but the vast majority of out-of-the-job doctors have not returned. In July, the South Korean government and representatives of the medical community re-established a consultation mechanism to discuss the doctor¡¯s return program.