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Foreign patients visiting Korea for treatment surge in 2009
SEOUL, Feb. 15 (Yonhap) -- The number of foreign patients who visited South Korea for medical treatment last year jumped sharply on the back of a government drive to enhance the competitiveness of the local medical industry, data showed Monday.
According to the data provided by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs, which conducted a nationwide poll of 616 medical institutes, a total of 55,324 foreigners visited South Korea for treatment last year, up 32 percent from a year earlier.
The surge comes despite a global economic slump that dented both exports and domestic consumption in South Korea.
The government has been pushing to enhance the competitiveness of the local medical industry as a new growth engine for the export-driven economy.
"Despite tough market conditions such as the economic slump and the spread of the H1N1 virus last year, the number of foreign patients here increased sharply, underlining the potential of the local health and medical industry as a new growth engine," a ministry official said.
kokobj@yna.co.kr
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