Physician Caught for Excessively Prescribing Over 50,000 Appetite Suppressants Including "Butterfly Pill"

First Criminal Action by Ministry’s Dedicated Narcotics Investigation Team

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on April 2 that it had referred a physician who excessively prescribed appetite suppressants, including the so-called "Butterfly Pill," to the prosecution on charges of violating the Narcotics Control Act.

According to the ministry, Doctor A, a family medicine physician at a clinic in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, excessively and repeatedly prescribed, or prescribed without consultation, the narcotic-based appetite suppressants phentermine and phendimetrazine to 24 patients who were not obese, outside of legitimate treatment purposes. From January 29, 2019, to January 24 of this year, Doctor A prescribed appetite suppressants for non-therapeutic purposes to these 24 specific patients, whose body mass index (BMI) was around 20 and who did not require such medication. The total amount prescribed reached 52,841 pills across 907 instances.

For the general public, appetite suppressants can only be prescribed as a short-term adjunct for weight loss to patients with a BMI of 30 kg/m² or higher, or to those with a BMI of 27 kg/m² or higher who also have other risk factors such as hypertension or diabetes. According to the 'Guidelines for the Safe Use of Medical Narcotic Appetite Suppressants,' prescriptions must not exceed four weeks at a time, the total prescribed period must not exceed three months, and use is not recommended for patients with a history of cardiovascular disease.

In particular, appetite suppressants such as phentermine, commonly known as the "Butterfly Pill," can cause dependence and withdrawal symptoms, as well as cardiovascular side effects such as palpitations, hypertension, and pulmonary arterial hypertension. They can also induce neuropsychiatric side effects including anxiety, insomnia, depression, and addiction. For these reasons, even a physician's prescription is restricted if the medication is not being used for therapeutic purposes, as these are regulated psychotropic drugs.

Doctor A prescribed as many as 17,363 pills over 147 months, citing the reason that non-obese patients continued to request appetite suppressants. In addition, it was found that Doctor A illegally prescribed addictive narcotics by issuing prescriptions for appetite suppressants directly at the reception desk without examination, and by issuing duplicate prescriptions to patients who visited earlier than the prescribed period.

This case marks the first criminal action taken against a medical professional for illegal narcotics prescriptions since the ministry established a dedicated narcotics investigation team in September last year. The ministry explained that through big data analysis of the Narcotics Information Management System (NIMS), it identified evidence of Doctor A's long-term prescriptions of appetite suppressants, and, after a medical validity review by external experts, suspected abuse and proceeded with search and seizure operations and other compulsory investigations.

In addition, during this investigation, the ministry recommended that the 24 patients suspected of addiction utilize the '1342 Courage One Step Center' operated by the Korea Association Against Drug Abuse, an organization under the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, to support their rehabilitation.

The ministry stated, "We will actively monitor and strictly investigate and respond to illegal prescriptions and use of medical narcotics, including appetite suppressants, ADHD medications, and propofol, beyond legitimate medical purposes."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.