Doctors’ Protest Hobbles Health Care

Medical services were gridlocked in South Korea as thousands of doctors rallied against a government plan to block physicians from selling medicine--and deprive many of them of their biggest source of income. About 80% of the nation’s 18,000 clinics shut down as a result of the protest. All major hospitals remained open but were overwhelmed by a rush of patients. Police hotlines were busy with calls from patients looking for ambulances to take them to distant hospitals because their local clinics were closed. The new plan would also prohibit pharmacists from selling drugs without a prescription.