Korean Medicine in South Korea: Training, Licensing and Insurance

A separate, licensed profession

In South Korea, Traditional Korean Medicine is not treated as "alternative." Researchers describe a unique dual system in which Western medicine and traditional medicine exist on equal terms with exclusive practice boundaries. [1] Korean medicine is regarded as part of conventional medicine, mainly because it has had its own education and licensing system since the 1950s. [1] For the tradition itself, see Traditional Korean Medicine.

This page describes South Korea. Everything here depends on the country, and rules change; check the current rules with the regulator named at the end.

Training

The Association of Korean Medicine (AKOM), the profession's own body, describes the pathway on its English-language page:

• The modern educational system in Korean medicine was established in 1947. [2]
• After a six-year course of study at a university of Korean medicine, graduates are qualified for the national examination for the license as doctors of Korean medicine. [2]
• The course covers theory, laboratory work and clinical practice in subjects such as acupuncture, herbal medicine, meridians and constitutional medicine, along with basic subjects of Western medicine. [2]
• Affiliated hospitals offer a four-year training course after graduation: one year of general internship and three years of residency. [2]
• A specialty system enacted in 1999 lets doctors sit an examination in eight departments. [2]

This is a profession's description of itself, and its page has some unclear wording and figures we did not use, so treat it as an outline. We could not find or read an official government page on licensing details, so we do not state exam rules, pass rates or numbers of schools.

Scope of practice and the dual system

The two professions have separate boundaries. A 2013 study says Korean medicine doctors are legally restricted from using diagnostic devices, which limits their examination and diagnosis; they tend to prefer Western medicine for laboratory tests and Korean medicine for treatment and prescription. [1] The same study says the arrangement has helped preserve traditional medicine but has produced institutionalized conflict between the two disciplines. [1] It dates the first Korean medicine hospitals to the 1970s. [1] Rules may have changed since 2013, so this is a historical description.

Dual-licensed doctors

Some doctors hold both a Korean medicine and a Western medicine license. The study calls them dual-licensed medical doctors, and says their numbers were growing. [1] Holding two licenses does not by itself show how a particular treatment performs; it only describes the doctor's training.

Insurance

South Korea's national health insurance covers some Korean medicine, but a 2025 analysis says that coverage remains limited, at only 4 percent of total national health insurance expenditures. [3] One example: in 2020 the National Health Insurance began reimbursing individually prescribed herbal decoctions for dysmenorrhea (painful periods). [4] A 2026 claims study of 8,989 users and 8,989 matched non-users found reimbursed decoctions were not associated with increased risk of severe adverse events such as hepatotoxicity or kidney failure. [4] That is a finding about one covered use, using claims data. It does not show the herbs are safe for every person.

Blood tests ordered by Korean medicine doctors were not covered by national insurance, according to a 2023 survey of doctors. [5] Insurance rules change; ask your insurer or the national health insurance service for current coverage. We do not give prices.

Who uses it

An analysis of 2022 Korea Health Panel Survey data found Korean medicine inpatient care was used mainly for accidents and musculoskeletal disorders, and 70 to 82 percent of users were satisfied or very satisfied (except for hospitalization costs). [3] Satisfaction is not the same as proven effectiveness.

Outside South Korea

Korean medicine licensing outside Korea varies, and we did not find a readable source for any specific country. In the United States, licensing of complementary practitioners varies considerably by state and discipline, and being licensed or certified is not always a guarantee of being qualified. [6] Find out about any practitioner's education, training and licensing, and whether they will work with your other health care providers. [7] See how to check a traditional practitioner and acupuncture licensing and training, which covers a closely related credential.

We do not list or recommend practitioners, clinics or schools.

Who should seek conventional care first

A Korean medicine license in Korea does not remove the need to tell all your health providers what you take. [7] Pregnancy, liver or kidney disease and prescription medicines call for a clinician or pharmacist's advice before any herbal prescription. See talking with a health professional.