A physician who illegally administered propofol to actor Yoo Ah In has been prescribing narcotics for over a year without facing any repercussions following his conviction.
MBN reports that despite being found guilty of illegally administering propofol to Yoo Ah In, the doctor continued to prescribe narcotics due to the health authorities’ failure to impose administrative penalties.
Current law mandates that medical professionals violating the Narcotics Control Act should face immediate administrative penalties, restricting their ability to prescribe controlled substances, in addition to criminal charges. However, this physician continued prescribing narcotics without significant consequences after his December 2024 conviction.
The Seoul Central District Court’s 9th Criminal Appeals Division, led by Judge Lee Seong-bok, handed down guilty verdicts to doctors accused of illegally prescribing propofol to Yoo Ah In. Sentences ranged from 6 months to 1 year in prison, with 1 to 2 years of probation. Some received lighter sentences, considering factors such as being first-time offenders and having young children.
Initially, the Gangnam Health Center stated that it received notification from the prosecution last year and are in the process of taking administrative action. When pressed for specific timelines, they declined to provide further details.
However, fact-checking revealed that the Gangnam Health Center had received notification of the guilty verdict from prosecutors in January of last year but failed to proceed with administrative penalties, effectively halting the process.
After the issue came to light, the health center hastily changed its stance. A representative offered a bewildering explanation, stating that a transferred employee failed to approve the document, so it wasn’t delivered to the narcotics management team. The responsible party remained unaware of the issue.
It was ultimately revealed that the health center only initiated administrative penalty proceedings against the doctor on March 18.