South Korea Strengthens Penalties for Narcotics Violations Amid Leakage Concerns

South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) is tightening regulations and penalties concerning the management of narcotics, aiming to prevent recurring incidents of theft and leakage, particularly involving substances like propofol. The ministry announced proposed revisions to the Narcotics Control Act's enforcement decrees and rules, which are open for public comment until July 20.

The revised rules will mandate stricter oversight by narcotics handlers – including manufacturers, hospitals, and pharmacies – of their employees regarding the prevention of theft or leakage of medical narcotics. Crucially, the penalties for initial violations of these supervision duties will be significantly increased. The business suspension period for a first offense will be extended from the current one month to three months. Previously, the suspension periods were 1, 3, 6, and 12 months for successive violations; under the revised rules, these will become 3, 6, 9, and 12 months.

The MFDS stated that these measures are being implemented in response to recent incidents of illegal diversion of substances like propofol. The ministry is also adding 17 new substances to its list of controlled narcotics and psychotropic drugs. These additions include substances classified by the UN as controlled or those identified as having physical or psychological dependency potential among temporary narcotics.

Furthermore, the revisions address procedural aspects of narcotics management. This includes clarifying the process for disposing of remaining narcotics when a handler loses their license due to business closure. It also requires handlers to submit details of their remaining narcotics and disposal plans to the relevant licensing authority when reporting business closure.

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We are pursuing this to strictly manage recent incidents of illegal diversion of propofol and other substances.