1,614 claims filed last year; 1,213 already received in first half of this year
Lung cancer accounts for 70% of last year's claims; lawmaker urges expansion of 'presumption principle'
Claims for workers' compensation recognition of occupational cancer have surged, but the approval rate has been falling. Last year's claim count was 5.8 times that of seven years ago, while the approval rate for the first half of this year stood at just 36.1 percent.
According to data submitted to the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service by Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Park Hae-chul of the National Assembly's Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee, the approval rate for occupational cancer workers' comp claims fell from 73.5 percent in 2018 to 60.6 percent in 2023, 54.8 percent in 2024 and 44.9 percent last year.
The rate dropped further to 36.1 percent in the first half of this year, down 8.8 percentage points from last year and 37.4 percentage points below the 2018 level.
Claims have moved in the opposite direction. The number of occupational cancer workers' comp claims rose from 279 in 2018, surpassing 1,000 for the first time in 2023 and reaching 1,614 last year — a 5.8-fold increase over seven years.
This year, 1,213 claims were filed in the first half alone, already equivalent to 75.2 percent of last year's full-year total.
Lung cancer has driven the surge in claims. Filings for lung cancer rose from 177 in 2018 to 345 in 2021, 774 in 2023 and 1,132 last year, accounting for about 70 percent of all occupational cancer claims filed last year.
Yet the lung cancer approval rate has declined steadily — from 91.0 percent in 2018 to 84.6 percent in 2021, 70.4 percent in 2023 and 62.6 percent in 2024. It fell to 54.0 percent last year and dropped below half to 44.9 percent in the first half of this year.
Approval rates for leukemia have also declined, falling from 57.1 percent in 2018 to 42.6 percent in 2024, 22.7 percent last year and 17.2 percent in the first half of this year.
Approval rates varied significantly by cancer type. Mesothelioma maintained a high approval rate of 85.3 percent last year and 85.7 percent in the first half of this year.
"The 'presumption principle,' currently limited to some industries such as semiconductors, must be significantly expanded to cover all industries that frequently handle hazardous materials," Park said.
He added that workers who meet certain requirements — such as a relevant work history and exposure to hazardous factors — should be presumed to have suffered a work-related injury, easing the burden of proof on employees.
fact0514@heraldcorp.com
