Minister of Health and Welfare, "Basic pension is limited to one year, but the principle must be maintained."

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Yoo Yoo-seon = In response to criticism that the government carried out a 'half-reorganization' due to political burden while trying to reform the basic pension, Minister of Health and Welfare Jeong Eun-kyung emphasized that the 'low-end, bottom-up' principle is being maintained.

Minister Chung responded as follows when Rep. Baek Jong-heon (People Power Party) pointed out at the National Assembly audit of the Health and Welfare Committee held at the National Assembly on the 7th, "They said they would reform the basic pension into a lower-lower-lower-lower-lower-lower-higher-lower pension system. However, conscious of political backlash, they excluded the 'higher pension', which reduces the number of recipients, and left the structure (which pays to the bottom 70% of income earners) as is."

Minister Jeong Eun-kyung explained, "Next year, the difference is simply about 9,000 won, but if the freeze (for the upper income class among recipients) continues, I think the range of lower-lower-lower-lower rates will increase," adding, "There are some limitations to achieving low-lower-lower rates in one year."

He continued, "This time, the reduction for couples is reduced from 20% to 10% for the bottom 45% (income), so instead of an increase of 30,000 won, it increases by about 120,000 won for married households, and (the budget) is about 1 trillion won more."

Previously, the government reviewed a plan to reorganize the basic pension, which was paid as a flat amount of about 350,000 won to seniors in the bottom 70% of income or less, to a lower-low-lower-low-low-income system, and to change the payment target from a target ratio to a center of median income.

However, the Ministry of Health and Welfare put the reform plan on hold right before officially announcing it, and announced that next year it would maintain the payment method for the bottom 70% of income earners but only introduce a 'lower' differential payment method that would pay an additional 30,000 won per month to the bottom 30%, which was pointed out as a decision due to concerns about a backlash from the elderly.