On the other hand, PHI does not play as significant a role as might be expected in some other countries without universal public coverage or where there are significant out-of-pocket payments. For example, while the Korean National Health Insurance system pays 44% of total health cost, a significant degree of out-of-pocket expenditure remains (41%). Limited development of a private health insurance market could be explained by the lack of a history of private and voluntary coverage in Korea, where individuals have historically financed health expenditures out of their pocket, dating back to the time prior to the establishment of public health cover. Other reasons could be.
