LGBTQ health in South Korea
The health access and health vulnerabilities experienced by the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual (LGBTQIA) community in South Korea are influenced by the state's continuous failure to pass anti-discrimination laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
The construction and reinforcement of the South Korean national subject, "kungmin," and the basis of Confucianism and Christian churches perpetuates heteronormativity, homophobia, discrimination, and harassment towards the LGBTQI community.
Korean public opinion and acceptance of the LGBTQI community have improved over the past two decades, but change has been slow, considering the increased opposition from Christian activist groups.
The presence of Korean LGBTQI organizations is a response to the lack of access to healthcare and human rights protection in South Korea.
It is also important to note that research that focuses on Korean LGBTQI health access and vulnerabilities is limited in quantity and quality as pushback from the public and government continues.
[5] A South Korean nationwide cross-sectional survey found that transgender adults face barriers to transition-related healthcare.
[5] The primary barrier to transitional-related healthcare is the cost of procedures like hormone therapy and sex reassignment surgery, as the national health insurance does not cover it.
[5] Transgender Koreans also face a financial burden resulting from the hardship of finding and maintaining a career due to societal stigma revolving around medical transition.
[6] Limited access to healthcare resources complicates transgender individual's process of changing their legal gender identity.
[8] Not conforming to the gender binary by undergoing GID diagnosis, hormonal therapy, and sex reassignment surgery means losing citizen rights.
These organizations provide an inclusive, safe environment to LGBTQI Koreans that face mental health needs like depression and suicide.
One way is through South Korea's continued HIV testing of individuals suspected of being "high risk" enabled by the AIDS Prevention Act.
Findings from "The People Living with HIV Stigma Index In South Korea 2016-2017" found that 61.5% of participants were unknowingly tested, most during non-related medical procedures.
[16] HIV/AIDS patients also risk violations of human rights, including rape, refusal of requests for medical attention, and negligent death.
An investigation found that Sudong Yonsei Sanitarium Hospital, the designated HIV/AIDS hospice, had concealed years of human rights abuse (since 2011) through threats to the patients.
[19] Organizations like Ivan Stop HIV/AIDS Project (iSHAP), funded by the Ministry of Health, provide prevention education, counseling, and offers free HIV tests and is run by sexual minority employees.
[3] Similarly, sexual minority youth (SMY) have higher rates of depression in response to psychological stress from "coming out" and family, friends, and classmates exclusion.
[23] Sexual minority youth consequently tend to have "low social and psychological self-esteem and high depression levels when compared to other student groups.
As reported by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, "92% of LGBTQI people were worried about becoming the target of hate crimes.
South Korean "low tolerance toward differences in sexual orientation" results in perceived burdensomeness to family and nation.
The study attributes the health risk behavior to the "stigma and prejudices against sexual minorities in society and feelings of marginalization lead to psychological distress.
The analysis found that gay and lesbian youth reported higher condom use as well as experiences with sexually transmitted diseases.
For instance, a survey found that people would refuse to be neighbors, share tables, let their children attend the same school, or care for family members with HIV/AIDS.
"[4] The World Health Organization has also reported that MSM and transgender individuals have a higher risk of sexual transmission when there is unprotected anal sex.
[25] Conversion therapy "is medically ineffective and has been proven by numerous studies to have the possibility of negatively impacting the mental health of LGBTI people.
[26] The Youth Hotline 1388 also revealed its portrayal of homosexuality as problematic and "a temporary inclination often experienced during adolescence," under the parent's guidebook, "Easy Guide on Sex."
In 2015, the U.N. Human Rights Committee also called for South Korea to release an official statement condemning the "propagation of so-called 'conversion therapies.
Additionally, due to the lack of governmental and institutional support, South Korean sexuality educators "fear discipline or parental backlash if they try to raise LGBT issues with students.
[15] In January 2022, a South Korean same-sex couple was refused health care insurance benefits by a lower court - because the spouse was "not of the opposite sex".
[28][29] In February 2023 the Seoul High Court ruled that the state’s health insurer should provide spousal coverage to a same-sex couple.
