National trends in the unmet healthcare needs among patients with hypertension or type 2 diabetes mellitus in Korea from 2009 to 2023

Sep 30, 2026

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Unmet healthcare needs are defined as situations where individuals required medical care within the past year but could not receive it. This study examines long-term trends and identifies vulnerable groups among South Korean adults with hypertension or type 2 diabetes mellitus using Korean Community Health Survey data from 2009–2023. Prevalence declined overall, but increased after COVID-19 onset. Risk factors included female sex, ages 30–44, and single-person households.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Background

Methods

Data source and population

Trend and slope analyses

Vulnerable subgroup identification

Results

Overall prevalence changes

COVID-19 period reversal

Risk factors and vulnerable subgroups

Conclusion

[www. nature.com/scientificreports](www. nature.com/scientificreports) OPEN National trends in the unmet healthcare needs among patients with hypertension or type 2 diabetes mellitus in Korea from 2009 to 2023 Yeona Jo1,2,14, Seoyoung Park1,2,14, Soeun Kim1,2, Yejun Son1,2, Jaeyu Park1,2,3, Hanseul Cho4, Louis Jacob5,6,7, Damiano Pizzol8,9, Guillermo F. López Sánchez10, Lee Smith11,12, Selin Woo1􀀍 & Dong KeonYon1,2,3,13􀀍 Unmet healthcare needs are defined as situations in which individuals required medical care within the past year but were unable to receive it. Among individuals with chronic conditions, such gaps in care may lead to serious complications, although previous studies during the COVID-19 pandemic remain limited. Therefore, this study aimed to address those gaps by examining long-term trends and identifying vulnerable populations among individuals with hypertension or type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in South Korea. We analyzed data from the Korean Community Health Survey from 2009 to 2023, including patients aged 30 years and older diagnosed with hypertension orT2DM (n = 2,704,712; 1,214,521 males [44.90%]). Among patients who reported experiencing unmet healthcare needs, only those with hypertension orT2DM were included in this analysis. Temporal trends in unmet healthcare needs were examined using complex-sample analyses and pandemic-related changes in temporal slopes were evaluated using weighted linear regression models with β-coefficients. Vulnerable subgroups were identified based on covariates defined according to Andersen’s behavioral model, using weighted odds ratios (wORs) from logistic regression models. From 2009 to 2023, the prevalence of unmet healthcare needs decreased from 16.02% to 4.76% among patients with hypertension and from 15.93% to 4.60% among those with T2DM. The lowest prevalence was observed atthe onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020; however, during the pandemic period, unmet needs subsequently reversed into an increasing trend, with statistically significant upward slopes (hypertension: βdiff, 0.487 [95% CI, 0.458–0.516]; T2DM: 0.527 [0.481–0.573]) . Risk factors for unmet healthcare needs included being females (hypertension: wOR, 1.44 [95% CI, 1.41–1.48]; T2DM: 1.46 [1.41–1.51]), being aged 30–44 years (hypertension: 1.70 [1.62–1.78]; T2DM: 1.93 [1.80–2.07]), and living in a single-person household (hypertension: 1.82 [1.77–1.88]; T2DM: 1.89 [1.80–1.97]). This study analyzed nationally representative data from South Korea, showing that unmet healthcare needs among patients with [www. nature.com/scientificreports/](www. nature.com/scientificreports/) hypertension orT2DM declined overall but increased after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Vulnerable subgroups were identified, underscoring the need for sustained and targeted management strategies. Keywords Epidemiology, Hypertension, South korea, Trend, Type 2 diabetes mellitus, Unmet healthcare needs 1Center for Digital Health, Medical Science Research Institute, Kyung Hee University Medical Center, Kyung Hee University College of Medicine, 23 Kyungheedae–ro, Dongdaemun–gu, Seoul 02447, South Korea. 2Department of Precision Medicine, Kyung Hee University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea. 3Department of Medicine, Kyung Hee University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea. 4Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA. 5Université Paris Cité, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), Lariboisière-Fernand Widal Hospital, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Paris, France. 6Inserm, Université Paris Cité, U1153, Epidemiology of Ageing and Neurodegenerative Diseases (EpiAgeing), Paris, France. 7Research and Development Unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, CIBERSAM, ISCIII, Dr.Antoni Pujadas, 42, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain. 8Health Unit Eni, Maputo, Mozambique. 9Health Unit Eni, San Donato Milanese, Italy. 10Division of Preventive

FAQs

How are unmet healthcare needs defined in this study?

They are defined as situations in which individuals required medical care within the past year but were unable to receive it, despite having a healthcare requirement.

What dataset and time span were used to study trends?

The study analyzed data from the Korean Community Health Survey from 2009 to 2023, focusing on patients aged 30 years and older diagnosed with hypertension or type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Did unmet healthcare needs increase after the COVID-19 pandemic began?

Overall prevalence decreased from 2009 to 2023, but the lowest point occurred around 2020, and unmet needs reversed into an increasing trend during the pandemic period.

Sep 30, 2026

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