The Constitutional Court has ruled that a medical law prohibiting anyone without a license from practicing alternative medicine such as acupuncture or magnetic therapy is constitutional.

Five out of nine judges said the law was unconstitutional, but since a ruling takes six judges to obtain, the final verdict remained unchanged.

The Justice Department said the current law is necessary to protect the health of patients.

However due to the large number of alternative medicine practitioners, debate over the issue is expected to heat up.