Where to go when you're sick — 119 medical consultation, ER, interpretation
This page is machine translated from Ieumi's guide written in Korean. If the meaning is confusing, please look at the Korean original text. View original text (Korean)
If you suddenly fall ill, 119 provides 24-hour medical consultation and tells you which ERs are open. Emergency rooms accept foreigners without discrimination. Save an interpretation number in your phone for when you can't communicate.
📌 Key points
119 is not just for putting out fires. It provides 24-hour medical consultation from emergency medicine specialists and guides you to emergency rooms currently accepting patients and pharmacies that are open. The old emergency medical consultation number, 1339, has been merged into 119. Also, Article 3 of the Emergency Medical Service Act explicitly states that "foreigners staying in Korea" also have the right to receive emergency medical care without discrimination based on ethnicity, economic circumstances, or similar reasons, and Article 6 prohibits refusing emergency patients without justifiable reason.
🔢 Do these in order
- If you're short of breath, losing consciousness, bleeding uncontrollably, or have severe chest pain, call 119 immediately. If Korean is difficult, 119 can connect a three-way call with the Tourist Information hotline (1330) or the Immigration Contact Center (1345) for interpretation.
- If it's not urgent but you don't know where to go, call 119 for medical consultation. You can also find currently open emergency rooms and pharmacies on the Emergency Medical Portal E-Gen.
- When going to the ER, bring your alien registration card (or passport) and any medication you're currently taking. Treatment is provided without asking about your visa status — that's what the law requires.
- If communication is difficult, use the free interpretation line 1588-5644 (24 hours) or the Danuri Call Center 1577-1366 and let the doctor listen in.
- If you have health insurance, you pay only your share. If not, you pay the full amount — if you're worried about the cost, ask the hospital's administrative office whether there is medical support for foreigners.
📞 Contact
119 — 24-hour emergency medical consultation · Emergency Medical Portal E-Gen
119's three-way call interpretation and E-Gen are both government-run. Foreign language support varies by hospital, so ask 119 before you go.
⚠️ Things to watch out for
Pharmacies have over-the-counter medicine (fever, cold, digestion) you can buy without a prescription. Find pharmacies open at night or on holidays through E-Gen or by calling 119. Those with alien registration can also join health insurance if they meet the requirements (National Health Insurance Act Article 109) — see also "Registering family as health insurance dependents."
❗ What happens if you don't
Going to the ER late lets the condition worsen, and being unable to explain your symptoms delays treatment. Saving an interpretation number in your phone ahead of time is the cheapest preparation.
See also
- Emergencies — 112 · 119, and text them if you cannot speak
- When you can't communicate — free interpretation at 1588-5644
- Register family as health insurance dependents — or each pays separately
- Unpaid health insurance — your hospital bills and your visa are both at stake
- Sick at night or on a holiday — finding an open clinic or pharmacy
- Big hospitals need a referral letter — go to a local clinic or hospital first
Basis
- 응급의료에 관한 법률 제3조·제6조 — 법제처 API 원문(MST 280429, 시행 2026-06-24) 2026-09-13 수집·대조
- 119 외국인 안내 https://www.119.go.kr/Center119/Foreign.do — 2026-09-13 확인(24시간 응급의학 전문의 의료상담 · 전화·이메일·인터넷·카카오플러스 · 1330·1345 3자 통화)
- 보건복지부 보도자료 「응급의료상담, 119에서 안내해 드립니다」 https://www.mohw.go.kr/board.es?mid=a10503010100&bid=0027&act=view&list_no=287774 — 1339 를 119 로 합침
- 국민건강보험법 제109조 — 법제처 원문(collected/law-nhis) 대조
This content was checked on 2026-10-10.