Infertility increased by 30% in two years...Related psychological counseling centers vary widely by region

Sep 18, 2025

Infertility increased by 30% in two years...Related psychological counseling centers vary widely by region
*The number of patients with the procedure means the number of unique couples (patients) who have undergone the procedure, and even if the same couple has undergone multiple procedures, it is calculated as one time. Data = Ministry of Health and Welfare Reorganizes Seo Young-seok's Office



Although the number of infertile patients and procedures has increased by nearly 30% in the past two years, psychological counseling support for infertile couples has been shown to be insufficient.

This is the result of analyzing data submitted by Seo Young-seok (Democratic Party of Korea), a member of the National Assembly's Health and Welfare Committee, from the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Health Insurance Corporation.

According to data submitted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the 18th, the total number of patients increased by 18,511 from 142,572 in 2022 to 161,083 in 2024. During the same period, the number of infertility procedures increased by 58,129 from 201,611 to 259,740, and the number of registered couples increased by 12,469 from 77,904 to 90,373 couples.




By age group, female patients aged 35 to 39 accounted for the largest proportion, while male patients aged 40 or older increased from 24,979 in 2022 to 28,402 in 2024. The number of female patients over the age of 40 also increased from 21,563 to 24,928.

Amid the increasing demand for infertility procedures, concerns about infertility depression are also increasing. Studies have also reported that 85-87% of all infertile couples experienced emotional pain and depression due to infertility.

In this regard, one central counseling center and 11 regional counseling centers are currently established and operated for infertility depression counseling centers. However, among the 17 cities and provinces nationwide, there are only eight areas where counseling centers have been established, so there is a large variation by region. In addition, while face-to-face counseling has stagnated, non-face-to-face counseling has steadily increased, exceeding face-to-face in 2024.




According to Seo Young-seok's office confirmed from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Lee Jae-myung government's 123 national tasks announced on the 16th include support for the establishment of psychological counseling centers for infertile and pregnant women, and specifically, it has proposed a plan to set up at least two additional centers every year and to recruit and select new centers by 2026.

Lawmaker Seo said, "Although infertility is an area where not only physical treatment but also psychological recovery must be combined, the current counseling center infrastructure falls far short of demand. The depression and anxiety of infertile couples due to aging pregnancy and repeated failures are not individual problems, but social tasks that the state should take responsibility for and support." The Ministry of Health and Welfare should prepare a budget as soon as possible to expand the center, deploy professional manpower, and enhance access to counseling" he urged.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.