Intensive Monitoring for Two Months Starting February 3
Administrative Sanctions and Criminal Charges for Violations
[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] Starting next month, crackdowns on illegal medical advertisements by non-medical personnel such as influencers, who are used in viral marketing, will be intensified for two months.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Medical Advertisement Self-Regulation Organization announced on the 27th that they will conduct focused monitoring to prevent damage caused by illegal medical advertisements, such as influencers’ treatment testimonials spreading online. The focused monitoring period will last for two months starting from the 3rd of next month, concentrating on SNS, portal sites, blogs, and online communities.
This monitoring will primarily target medical advertisements by non-medical personnel used in viral marketing. According to Article 56, Paragraph 1 of the Medical Service Act, the subjects of medical advertisements are limited to medical professionals, heads of medical institutions, and medical institution founders, so medical advertisements by non-medical personnel violate the Medical Service Act.
In particular, regarding beauty and plastic surgery-related information, there is a high dependence on information obtained through online communities, and viral marketing targeting this is preferred, so the Ministry of Health and Welfare judges that strict measures are necessary against illegal medical advertisements such as treatment testimonials by non-medical personnel. Accordingly, non-medical personnel such as influencers need to be cautious not to post treatment testimonials that include content about medical procedures.
For non-medical personnel or medical institutions confirmed to have potential violations of the Medical Service Act, such as illegal medical advertisements during this monitoring, administrative actions and criminal charges will be taken through the relevant public health centers.
In cases of patient inducement or mediation, penalties include imprisonment for up to three years or fines up to 30 million KRW, along with a two-month suspension of medical qualifications. For false or exaggerated advertisements, penalties include imprisonment for up to one year or fines up to 10 million KRW, and a one to two-month suspension of medical institution operations.
Ko Hyung-woo, Director of Health and Medical Policy at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said, "Non-medical personnel should be careful not to engage in illegal medical advertisements by guiding or recommending medical procedures even when sharing personal experiences, and consumers should also be cautious not to be misled by individual and subjective treatment testimonials."
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