SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — South Korea has scrapped a proposal to end mandatory gender segregation in hospital inpatient rooms, a health ministry official confirmed to Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Tuesday, after public backlash over safety.

Several countries, such as Japan and Canada, have introduced gender-neutral facilities, a move that has sparked debate and pushback from critics who argue privacy concerns, as well as safety risks including sexual misconduct in shared spaces.

South Korea is a global technology and cultural powerhouse, but remains socially conservative.

The health ministry unveiled the plan last month as part of broader regulatory reforms to make it easier for family members and couples to share hospital rooms.

“Gender segregation will be maintained as under the current system,” a health ministry official told AFP Tuesday.

Exceptions to intensive care units, in which patients require close monitoring regardless of sex, and two-bed rooms occupied by family members would remain in place, the health ministry added.

Under the now withdrawn proposal, South Korean hospitals would no longer have been required to separate patients by gender in inpatient rooms, a rule currently enforced and punishable by up to 15 days’ suspension for violations.

The health ministry had proposed the change, arguing that some hospitals already allowed married couples to share two-bed rooms and that the regulation was no longer necessary.

It said the decision to withdraw comes after reflecting on the response from the public.

The proposal drew strong opposition with more than 4,000 comments posted on the government’s legislative notice website.

“There could be a possibility of sex crimes targeting women,” one commenter wrote.

Another described the proposal as an “ignorant bill that disregards the fear and anxiety of female patients.”