OBJECTIVES : In Korea, the principles and standards have been determined by experts in allocating health care resources while healthcare coverage enhancement policy. Therefore, it has been criticized that citizen 's opinions and social preferences are not sufficiently reflected. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the social preference and the reasons for applying the priority setting for priority allocation of health care resources to the general population.

METHODS : Focus group interviews were held from February 14 to 18, 2019. Participants were ordinary people living in the Seoul metropolitan area. A total of 62 people were recruited according to the region and income from the panels of research company. To improve participants' understanding, a brief case including disease description, and the price and effectiveness of some selectable treatments was presented. In this study, the Focus Group interview was conducted by a professional moderator, and the researchers provided a guideline for FGI proceeding in advance.

RESULTS : One common opinion among all groups of participants, except for the group of men in their twenties, is that they should consider all ages fairly. Some of the participants mentioned the practical reason that since they have contributed to the insurance premiums during working age, they have to be covered as an elderly person. In addition, there were overwhelming opinions that health care financing should be prioritized for diseases with severity. One of the reasons is that the higher the severity, the higher the cost of treatment and the greater the likelihood that the individual will not afford to pay for the treatment. And another reason is that people with severity disease have lost their financial ability.

CONCLUSIONS : The social preference for healthcare resource allocation for Koreans is to treat all ages equally and to prioritize the higher severity of the disease.