YouTuber Li Ke Tai Tai (理科太太) has allegedly breached the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act (藥事法) with a video promoting an at-home Pap smear test kit, the Taipei Department of Health said, adding that it would fine the videomaker next week at the earliest.
Li Ke Tai Tai, who has more than 1 million subscribers on her YouTube channel, on Thursday last week posted a video on YouTube and Facebook in which she unboxed the kit and explained how to use it while touting its advantages.
The video had been viewed more than 160,000 times as of Wednesday.
Photo: Screen grab from YouTube
The department said that it received a report on Wednesday and found that the video breached rules against publishing or broadcasting medical advertisements without gaining approval from health authorities.
The video was removed on Thursday at the request of the department, which asked Li Ke Tai Tai and Sofiva Genomics Co, Ltd (慧智基因), the product’s manufacturer, to explain the situation in person.
However, both parties requested permission to not attend the meeting.
Food and Drug Division Director Wang Ming-li (王明理) said that Li Ke Tai Tai’s agent on Friday explained the situation to the department and confirmed that she had signed a marketing agreement with Sofiva Genomics to promote the kit.
The department has confirmed the existence of the video and marketing agreement, so the YouTuber and company would both be fined NT$200,000 to NT$5 million (US$6,475 to US$161,875), Wang said.
While some social media influencers have been fined for exaggerating or claiming unrealistic effects when advertising products, this is the first case in which an influencer is to be fined for unapproved advertising of medical equipment, she said.
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