Investigators from the Fair Trade Commission enter the Korean Medical Association (KMA) building in Seoul, Wednesday, for an investigation into the group that led the one-day walkout of doctors across the country. Yonhap

The government is stepping up pressure on doctors who are protesting the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's policy to increase the annual medical school admissions quota.

On Wednesday, the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) undertook an investigation into the Korean Medical Association (KMA), the day after the KMA led a one-day walkout of primary care physicians as well as a rally in Yeouido, Seoul.

The FTC dispatched its investigators to the KMA building to secure materials related to the rally, for which some 12,000 doctors had gathered, according to the police's estimation.

The investigation began two days after the Ministry of Health and Welfare made a report claiming that the nation's largest lobby group of doctors incited the walkout of general practitioners.

The FTC is looking into the possibility that the KMA had unduly restricted the medical treatment activities of these physicians by pressuring them to participate in the walkout and join the rally.

The key element that will determine whether the KMA is found to have violated the Fair Trade Act will be how coercive it was when telling its members to participate in the collective action. In this respect, the commission is also looking into text messages and letters the KMA sent to its members.

“As for now, we cannot confirm anything as the investigation is still ongoing. We will respond firmly, if any violation of the law is confirmed,” a FTC official said.

A patient is seen at a major hospital in Seoul, Wednesday. Yonhap

The health ministry characterized the latest walkout as an “unlawful refusal to treat patients,” vowing to respond strictly to the action according to related laws.

The ministry also claimed that the KMA could face dissolution if it continues activities against the purpose of its establishment.

“The KMA is the statutory body responsible for promoting public health. The collective refusal to treat patients is against this purpose,” Jeon Byung-wang in charge of health care policy at the ministry said during a media briefing, Tuesday.

“If it continues these behaviors and causes medical service disruptions, the government can issue a correction order, change executives or disperse the organization, in an extreme case.”

In another attempt to ramp up the pressure, the ministry has also asked police to launch investigations into doctors suspected of being involved with rebate schemes in some 20 cases.

The rebates refer to illegal kickbacks offered by pharmaceutical companies to doctors in return for prescribing, purchasing or recommending their products.

Upon receiving the ministry's request, the National Police Agency recently began the investigations by distributing the cases to related local offices.

This came after more than 1,000 doctors have already been facing a police investigation for suspicions that they had received illegal kickbacks in cash and other rewards from a major drug company.

Despite the growing pressure, the KMA expressed its willingness to continue its protest, threatening to launch an indefinite strike on June 27 unless the government accepts their demands.

The KMA has demanded that the government reconsider the medical school quota increase and cancel all administrative measures it initiated to punish trainee doctors who have walked off their jobs since late February in protest against the quota hike decision.

The group also called for revising some of the government's plans designed to improve the essential medical treatment fields.

However, the government has maintained the position that accepting such demands is not feasible, considering that the punitive steps against trainee doctors were implemented in accordance with the Constitution and relevant laws and that all administrative procedures for adding approximately 1,500 new medical students had already been finalized last month.

Meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether doctors will be able to present a united front for the June 27 indefinite strike as some senior KMA members raised complaints that the decision was made unilaterally by Lim Hyun-taek, who heads the group, without consultation or due procedures.

In addition, Park Dan, the leader of the Korean Intern Resident Association, a group of trainee doctors, refused to participate in a new medical communitywide response committee to be launched by the KMA, Thursday.

According to the KMA, this entity will lead their anti-government actions.