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[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] Ahead of the final hearing in the appeals trial for a KRW 50 billion damages lawsuit filed by the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) against tobacco companies, a recent survey reveals that 6 out of 10 Koreans believe tobacco firms should bear the medical costs for lung cancer patients.



Interestingly, awareness of corporate responsibility was found to be stronger among smokers than non-smokers.



On May 15, the Korea Medical Bio Press Association, in collaboration with the Korean Academy of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases, hosted a symposium titled “Smoking and Lung Cancer: Focus on the Tobacco Lawsuit” at the Korea Press Center in Seoul, where the survey results were presented.



The online survey was conducted from March 27 to April 15 among 1,209 Korean adults aged 20 and older, including 757 non-smokers, 218 smokers, and 234 ex-smokers.



Since 2014, NHIS has been pursuing a lawsuit against domestic tobacco companies—KT&G, Philip Morris Korea, and BAT Korea—seeking to recover KRW 53.3 billion in national health insurance expenditures. The case involves medical costs paid for 3,465 patients suffering from lung or laryngeal cancer who had smoked for at least 20 pack-years (e.g., one pack per day for 20 years) or for more than 30 years. The final appeal hearing is scheduled for May 22.



According to the survey, 45.9% of respondents said they were either somewhat (34.2%) or well (11.7%) aware of the lawsuit, while 33.3% said they had simply heard of it.



Smokers reported the highest level of detailed awareness at 22.5%, compared to 7.8% for non-smokers and 14.5% for ex-smokers. Conversely, non-smokers were more likely to have only heard of the case (39%) compared to ex-smokers (24.4%) and smokers (23.4%).



When asked about the idea of tobacco companies covering medical expenses related to smoking-related diseases, 63.7% of all respondents expressed support.



By group, 72.5% of smokers supported the idea (45.9% for partial responsibility, 26.6% for full responsibility), followed by 68% of ex-smokers (46.6% partial, 21.4% full), and 59.8% of non-smokers (38.8% partial, 21% full).

 

 

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