Pediatric clinics shrink as general practitioner openings surge

Pediatric clinics are disappearing from neighborhoods, with more closures than new openings recorded last year.

In contrast, the number of clinics opened by general practitioners continued to rise, with the total exceeding 10,000. Four out of 10 clinics newly opened last year were run by general practitioners.

(Credit: Getty Images)

According to data recently released by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA) titled “Status of New Openings and Closures of Medical Institutions by Specialty,” pediatric clinics recorded fewer openings and more closures in 2025. This trend appears to reflect structural demand contraction driven by low birth rates, compounded by the fallout from government–doctor conflicts.

The crisis facing pediatric clinics is stark. While 69 new pediatric clinics opened in 2024, only 59 opened in 2025, a decline of 10 year on year. Over the same period, closures rose sharply by 25, from 64 to 89.

As a result, the total number of pediatric clinics fell from 2,187 in 2024 to 2,156 in 2025, marking a 1.42 percent decline, or 31 clinics, year on year.

By contrast, general practitioner clinics are expanding.

Last year, the number of newly opened general practitioner clinics exceeded closures for the first time, pushing the total above 10,000. A total of 747 new clinics opened, while 412 closed.

Notably, 40.6 percent of all newly opened clinics last year were general practitioner clinics. The total number of such clinics increased by 340, or 3.4 percent, from 9,915 to 10,255 in 2025.

This shift is attributed to the fact that many resident doctors who left hospitals during the 2024 medical policy conflict did not return, instead choosing private practice. The growth in general practitioner clinics appears particularly concentrated in non-reimbursed fields, such as dermatology and cosmetic medicine.