<Anchor> This is a
friendly economic time. Today (10th), we will also be with reporter Han Ji-yeon. Yesterday, the National Assembly passed a bill to amend the Veterinary Law requiring that medical expenses for companion animals be disclosed in advance. Looking at this, it seems to be a rebuttal to the fact that the cost of treating pets is too expensive, there are many problems, and there have been many stories like this, but there is a problem now, right? (Yes, do you have any pets?) No. I am not raising it. Have you ever raised a journalist?
<Reporter> In
my case, my parents are raising cats and dogs right now, and they always say, "Hospital costs are higher than people."
Today, when I came out with this topic, I did a chat interview with my companion who said how much hospital bills are being paid and the dog I had a few years ago went to heaven.
It's a puppy called 'Wongchi' that is going out on the screen right now, and he was hospitalized for 3 days before he died in 2018.
The ultrasound showed that the liver and gallbladder were bad, so he had to have surgery. He also said that if you go to the hospital once, you can easily come out with 200,000 to 300,000 won.
It's not just a bunch of issues. According to a survey conducted by the Korea Consumer Federation, an average of 84,000 won per treatment at a veterinary hospital.
I recently had an eye disease, so I went to an ophthalmologist, and the hospital bills totaled about 19,000 won. It's definitely worth saying that hospital bills are higher than people's.
It is a companion animal that gives peace of mind and is like a child, but 8 out of 10 people answered that the cost of treatment is burdensome.
<Anchor>
No, I've heard that pet treatment costs are high, but from a reporter's explanation, it seems to be coming out a lot. But what's even more strange is that hospital fees vary from hospital to hospital?
<Reporter>
Yes, it is. That's why there is a saying that "it's a price to call" at veterinary hospitals, but even for the same treatment, the name of the treatment is not unified, and the method of organizing the cost is different.
As of the end of last year, there were 4,600 veterinary hospitals. However, the cost of treatment varies from hospital to hospital, so it is said that the difference can be as much as 6 times.
Because the cost of treatment is so different, the companions have no choice but to find out the price by selling their products. Another dissatisfaction is that they are not informed of the cost of treatment in advance.
In fact, when I asked the veterinary hospital what the complaints were, this was also the part that answered the most. In addition, the 'posting of medical expenses' took the first place in wishing to veterinary hospitals.
<Anchor>
So, as we said before, the amendment to the Veterinary Law was proposed and passed. Please explain what it contains.
<Reporter>
Yes, the revision bill of the Veterinary Law, which contains such contents, has to be disclosed in advance, passed the National Assembly yesterday as said.
The purpose is to guarantee the right to know and the right of choice for the companion.
The veterinary hospital establishment must inform the animal owner of the estimated cost of treatment in advance. However, the cost of treatment may be higher. In this case, we have made it possible to notify you even after treatment.
Also, in the case of a veterinarian, he or she must obtain written consent in advance, providing information such as the name of the diagnosis, the need for treatment, and aftereffects.
The cost of treatment was also required to be posted for medical examinations, hospitalizations, immunizations, and tests, and we were not able to charge more than this. Also, the names of diseases and medical items have not been unified until now. A legal basis for standardizing this has also been established.
<Anchor>
As you just said, the legal basis has been established, so it seems that there is still a little bit of work to be done in detail. But one reporter, the last thing I want to ask is, if medical expenses are burdensome, don't we buy insurance and offset it with insurance? Does your pet not have such insurance or anything like that? Is it not expensive even if there is one, or what?
<Reporter> There is
pet insurance, but there are currently 9 million companion animals in Korea, but only 30,000 animals, or 0.3%, are insured.
There are 7 insurance companies selling products that you can recognize just by hearing their names.
There are two types of insurance rates, 50% and 70%, and in this case, it is high at 30-50%.
However, the monthly insurance premiums are not low.
It was around 4,000 won.
For this reason, from the point of view of the companion, there is no choice but to be hesitant.
When I asked him why he didn't actually get insurance, he said that insurance premiums are expensive and there are many cases where major diseases are not covered.
So, there were many opinions that it is better to save money rather than buy pet insurance.
The insurance industry explained that it was difficult to activate insurance because the cost of treatment had not been standardized.