Choi Seo-won's daughter says mother paralyzed, W37m in hospital bills unpaid

Choi Seo-won, formerly known as Choi Soon-sil, the woman at the center of the influence-peddling scandal that brought down the Park Geun-hye government, has won a court ruling against the corrections authorities over medical bills paid on her behalf — but her daughter says 37 million won ($27,400) in hospital fees remains unpaid, and that Choi's health has deteriorated to the point where she can no longer use her legs.

Jeong Yu-ra said Friday on her Facebook page that despite the court victory, "37 million won is still overdue, including bills at Chungbuk National University Hospital and the hospital where she is currently admitted." She added, "I will pay it all off even if I have to beg."

Jeong also said her mother had developed depression on top of her physical condition. "My mother has become disabled due to lower-body paralysis and cannot use her legs at all," she wrote, appealing for help so that Choi could "receive proper treatment at the hospital."

A court ruled that Choi does not have to repay the corrections authorities for the medical costs they covered on her behalf.

Choi fell in a bathroom at Seoul Eastern Detention Center in July 2019 and underwent shoulder surgery at Gangdong Sacred Heart Hospital from May to July 2020. When she declined to pay the bill citing financial hardship, the corrections authorities covered the 39.27 million won cost on Oct. 23, 2020, and later sought reimbursement.

The court ruled in Choi's favor, finding that while she had requested outside medical care at her own expense and the detention center had approved it on that condition, the reimbursement claim had arisen on Oct. 23, 2020, and the five-year statute of limitations had clearly expired.