Incheon posts highest preventable mortality rate among major cities for 5th straight year

Incheon has recorded the highest preventable mortality rate among South Korea's eight special and metropolitan cities for five consecutive years, according to an analysis of government health data.

While the overall rate has been declining, significant gaps in healthcare access persist — particularly in older urban districts and island communities — and the city continues to lag behind other major cities in essential medical personnel.

Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Heo Jong-sik, who represents Incheon's Dong-gu and Michuhol-gu (Gap) constituency, released the findings Tuesday after analyzing data from the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. The data showed Incheon's preventable mortality rate rose from 48.58 per 100,000 people in 2020 to 51.49 in 2021.

The rate then declined — to 51.31 in 2022, 49.59 in 2023 and 46.18 in 2024 — but remained the highest among the eight metropolitan cities, which include Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon, Ulsan and Sejong, throughout all five years from 2020 to 2024.

In 2024, Incheon's rate of 46.18 exceeded Busan's 45.99, while Daegu and Gwangju each recorded 42.42 — a notable gap from Incheon.

Analysts say the figures point to substantial disparities in healthcare access across different parts of the city, going beyond a general assessment of Incheon's overall medical standards.

The gaps within Incheon itself are stark.

Looking at the five-year average preventable mortality rate from 2020 to 2024, Dong-gu recorded the highest at 58.66 per 100,000, followed by Ongjin-gun at 58.46. Michuhol-gu came in at 54.36, Ganghwa-gun at 53.76, Namdong-gu at 52.40 and Jung-gu at 51.46.

Yeonsu-gu had the lowest rate at 38.92 — meaning Dong-gu and Ongjin-gun's five-year averages were roughly 1.5 times higher.

Ongjin-gun, an island district, showed particularly wide year-to-year swings. Its preventable mortality rate fluctuated from 52.7 in 2020 to 72.0 in 2021, fell to 43.5 in 2022, soared to 88.4 in 2023 and dropped back to 35.7 in 2024.

Ganghwa-gun also posted a high rate of 52.2 in 2024. Given that residents of island and border areas can face limited access to mainland medical facilities depending on weather and transportation conditions, experts say dedicated measures for emergency and essential healthcare are needed in these communities.

The size of Incheon's medical workforce further illustrates the city's healthcare vulnerabilities.

As of the end of December 2025, 5,785 doctors were working at medical institutions in Incheon — fewer than the 6,319 in Daegu, which has a population more than 600,000 smaller than Incheon's, and 2,728 fewer than Busan's 8,513.

Incheon also had about 1.9 doctors per 1,000 residents, the second lowest among the six metropolitan cities after Ulsan.

The shortfall is even more pronounced in essential medical specialties directly tied to patient survival. Incheon had 2,547 specialists across eight core fields — including internal medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynecology, and pediatrics — compared with 3,610 in Busan, a gap of 1,063.

The number of cardiovascular and thoracic surgery specialists grew from just 55 in 2018 to 58 in 2025 — an increase of only three over seven years. Over the same period, Daegu added seven specialists, going from 50 to 57, and Busan grew from 87 to 90.

Some analysts say Incheon's preventable mortality problem is not merely a statistical issue but an indicator of whether the city's local healthcare system is functioning well enough to deliver the right treatment at the right time.

"Incheon's preventable mortality rate is falling, but it has been the highest among major cities for five straight years, and the gap between the older urban core and island areas within the city is wide," Heo said. "The fact that a metropolis of about 3 million people has fewer doctors than Daegu, and that growth in thoracic surgeons — specialists directly tied to saving lives — has been negligible, is a structural problem."

He added that the central government and Incheon city must move quickly to expand essential medical personnel and build a self-sufficient public healthcare system that allows residents of underserved areas — including Ganghwa-gun and Ongjin-gun — to receive timely and appropriate treatment without having to leave the city.