Need for Legal and Institutional Reforms Raised over the Use of Medical Data in the AI Era

[Financial News] As the use of healthcare data expands due to advances in artificial intelligence (AI) technology, opinions have emerged that laws, systems, and governance must be established to support the safe use of data.
The Korea Health Information Service announced on the 23rd that it held a session titled 'Digital Health, Discussing Policies for the Future' at the '2026 Korea Health Information Service Annual Symposium,' held at the COEX Convention & Exhibition Center in Seoul on the 11th, to discuss the direction of development for digital health policies, laws, and systems.
Professor Kim Jae-sun of Dongguk University addressed the key elements of the domestic legal framework and issues in the legislative process under the theme of AI transformation (AX) in the medical field through the Digital Healthcare Act. Professor Emeritus Jung Hyung-sun and Professor Park Yu-rang of Yonsei University introduced healthcare data governance cases from major countries and presented directions for designing Korea's domestic system.
During the panel discussion, personal information protection and liability issues arising from the expanded use of medical data were addressed as key points of contention. Cho Min-kyu, a reporter for ZDNet Korea, emphasized the need to clarify liability and remedies for damages resulting from personal information leaks and to establish standards for the safe use of data. Professor Cho Dong-chan of Hanyang University suggested that separate protection standards and the consent of data subjects are necessary for highly sensitive medical information, such as mental health, rare diseases, and genetic data.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) plans to establish, through the Digital Healthcare Act, an institutional framework that protects health information safely while allowing it to be used within the necessary scope. Kim Min-jung, head of MOHW's Medical Information Policy Division, explained that the level of protection has been strengthened compared with the Personal Information Protection Act, including by requiring the consent of data subjects even when pseudonymized information concerning mental or genetic diseases is used.
The government's alternative proposal also includes provisions prohibiting the use of health information for purposes that disadvantage the public, such as discrimination in insurance enrollment, while allowing its safe use for public-interest research, including rare-disease treatment and the development of innovative technologies.
The participants unanimously agreed that the use of medical data and the protection of personal information should be viewed not as conflicting values but as goals that must be achieved together, and that clear standards and systems of responsibility and compensation reflecting the characteristics of the healthcare sector must be established.
Meanwhile, discussions in the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea on the enactment of the Digital Healthcare Act are also underway. Legislative procedures are continuing, including discussions on the relevant bill at the Bill Review Subcommittee of the Health and Welfare Committee of the National Assembly on the 16th.
Yeom Min-seop, president of the Korea Health Information Service, said, "As the advancement of AI and digital technology has made the AX of healthcare data a key task, it is important to establish institutional infrastructure and social trust together."

[email protected] Jeong Sang-hee Reporter