World · East Asia & Pacific · 2 hrs ago
South Korea's health insurer cannot recover 2.3 billion won in identity theft cases
An undocumented migrant used another person's health insurance identity to receive liver cancer treatment in South Korea.
From May 2020 to November 2023, the patient received care 105 times at a major hospital.
The National Health Insurance Service paid 78.78 million won toward the treatment.
The patient later died, so the service could not recover any of that money.
The case is part of a wider problem: the service has been unable to recover 2.3 billion won in payments linked to stolen identities.
Another case involved someone who used a woman's insurance identity for more than 10 years; no further action is described.
South Korea’s National Health Insurance Service cannot recover 2.3 billion won paid in fraudulent claims involving stolen identities.
One undocumented person used another person’s health insurance identity for liver cancer treatment 105 times from May 2020 to November 2023.
The insurer paid 78.78 million won for that person’s treatment and recovered nothing after the person died.
Another identity-theft case involved hospital visits under another person’s name for more than 10 years.
- Who
- South Korea’s National Health Insurance Service and people who used others’ health insurance identities.
- What
- The insurer cannot recover 2.3 billion won in fraudulent benefits paid in identity-theft cases.
- When
- The article was published on October 24, 2026. One case ran from May 2020 to November 2023.
- Where
- South Korea.
- Why
- The insurer could not recover the treatment payments after the person in one case died.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
An undocumented person used another person’s health insurance identity for liver cancer treatment 105 times.
The National Health Insurance Service recovered none of the 78.78 million won it paid for the treatment.
- Unrecoverable fraudulent benefits
- 2.3 billion won
- Treatment visits
- 105
- Treatment payment
- 78.78 million won
- First case period
- May 2020–November 2023
- Long-running identity misuse
- More than 10 years