Doctors’ Self-Medication with​ Narcotics Raises Concerns

Kim Mi-ae, a member of the ‍People Power Party, pointed out on the 1st that 1,445 doctors ​have self-medicated‌ with medical narcotics every year from 2020 to this year.

According⁢ to the‌ data that Rep. ⁣Kim received from the Ministry of Food and Drug ⁤Safety that day, from ‌January to May of⁣ this⁣ year, there were 5,265 cases ‌in which doctors and ​dentists prescribed⁢ narcotic drugs such⁣ as anti-anxiety drugs, appetite suppressants, ⁣and anti-epileptic⁣ drugs to individuals, totaling 9,940 cases.

From 2020⁢ to May of this year, 1,445 doctors were confirmed to have self-administered medication without fail every year.

Revised Narcotics Control Act⁣ to Prevent⁤ Misuse

In order to prevent such misuse, the National Assembly⁢ passed a revision to⁢ the Narcotics Control Act ⁣in January to prohibit ‌doctors and others from prescribing ⁣narcotics or psychotropic​ drugs⁢ for their​ own use or administration, taking into⁢ consideration overseas regulations such as Canada, which prohibit doctors from ⁤prescribing narcotics to themselves or their families. The law‌ will go ⁢into ⁤effect in February⁢ next year.

Rep. Kim emphasized, ‍”Since it ​has been found that over 1,400 doctors have been confirmed to have self-medicated without fail ‍every year‍ from 2020 ​to May⁢ of ⁤this year, the Ministry of Food ‍and Drug Safety must ⁤swiftly ⁣conduct ​a comprehensive inspection​ of self-prescription of narcotics,”​ and “We need to continue to‌ check whether the ‘advance notification’ and the information network to prevent medical shopping for​ narcotics are functioning‍ properly.”

Reporter Jeong Gyeong-su