Medical treatment brokerage is against the Medical Care Act (醫療法), Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said, after local media reported that a social media influencer allegedly referred Taiwanese people to get plastic surgery in Shanghai.
Chinese-language Mirror Media on Monday reported that a social media influencer named Mico Hung (洪洛妍), who has more than 400,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok, brought together a team in Shanghai offering intermediation services to Taiwanese and clinics in the Chinese city.
According to the report, Hung allegedly said she wanted to use her 14-year experience of receiving cosmetic treatments, which in total cost her more than NT$9 million (US$288,443).
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Taipei Times
Hung’s team includes personal assistants, beauty consultants and administrative personnel, and has a “strict” standard operating procedure to “protect” patients’ rights, the report quoted her as saying.
A woman told Mirror Media that she had undergone cosmetic surgery in Shanghai through Hung’s referral, but after the surgery her lower eyelid become swollen, the report said.
Hung’s team allegedly shirked responsibility and cyberbullied the woman by sharing her personal information online, and she had to receive further treatment in Taiwan, the report said.
Another woman who used the service said that Hung oversells doctors and facilities in Shanghai, saying they could perform “miracles” and often criticizing Taiwanese clinics and medical professionals, according to the report.
Shih on Monday said the Ministry of Health and Welfare does not advise people to undergo such medical treatment abroad, as it is more difficult to investigate medical procedures in other countries.
“Medical procedures have their risks, and if medical incidents occur in other countries, people might not be able to handle them promptly,” he said.
Providing intermediation services for people in Taiwan to get medical treatment in other countries contravenes the act, which stipulates that “non-medical care institutions shall not make advertisements for medical care.”
The ministry would order the local health department to investigate the case, he said, adding that the ministry also urges people not to apply for such services, which could pose them to a high risk of overseas healthcare fraud.
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