South Korea's National Assembly Passes Amendments on Radiation Disaster Response, Strengthening the Treatment System for Radiation Victims

The South Korean National Assembly held a plenary session on the 20th and passed two livelihood bills proposed by Rep. Yoon Jun-byeong, a member of the Parliamentary Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs and Fisheries Committee. The bills concern the establishment of a radiation disaster response system and adjustments to the support system for surviving family members of national meritorious persons.

Under the amendments passed, the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute will be granted the qualification to operate as a specialized hospital for treating radiation victims. This arrangement aims to further improve the national medical safety net, enabling industrial radiation workers and victims of accidental radiation incidents to receive faster and more systematic treatment and rehabilitation support.

Meanwhile, another amendment was also passed. This amendment, in accordance with the Constitutional Court's ruling of nonconformity, abolishes the provision that prioritized age as the sole criterion in the payment of survivor benefits to families of national meritorious persons of the same rank. After the relevant institutional adjustment, greater emphasis will be placed on safeguarding the rights of low-income households to reduce blind spots in welfare support.

Rep. Yoon Jun-byeong stated that this legislation lays the legal foundation for establishing a national medical infrastructure capable of professionally protecting the public and workers against risks from radiation exposure at industrial sites and accidental radiation incidents. He also noted that the relevant legislative revisions will help provide compensation to surviving family members of national meritorious persons that better reflects their living conditions.