Man referred to prosecutors over using AI to issue medical prescriptions without license

A man in his 30s has been referred to prosecutors for operating a website that used AI to issue medical prescriptions. Authorities said that they referred the man to prosecutors late last month without detention.

A logo of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. [JOONGANG ILBO]

A man in his 30s has been referred to prosecutors for operating a website that used AI to issue medical prescriptions.

The Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Division of the Gyeonggi Nambu Police Agency announced Saturday that it referred the man to prosecutors late last month without detention on charges including violations of the Special Act on the Control of Health Crimes.

The man is accused of running a website between August and November last year that issued prescriptions based on symptoms described in chats with an AI. He also allegedly forged documents by using the names of medical professionals from other hospitals to meet the formal requirements of a prescription.

Despite having no background in medicine, he reportedly trained the AI by repeatedly inputting prescription-related content and attracted users by advertising this process. He issued prescriptions based solely on user chats with the AI, without consultation or diagnosis from a medical professional. Under the health crimes law, individuals who are not licensed medical practitioners are prohibited from engaging in medical treatment as a business.

Users were charged 300 won ($0.20) to 600 won per prescription, with around 140 payments processed in total. However, because the format and content of the prescriptions differed from standard forms, only a small number were successfully used at pharmacies. None of the prescriptions involved psychotropic drugs, and no health problems were reported from taking any of the prescribed medication.

Police launched the investigation last October after receiving a complaint from the Korean Medical Association. It is unusual for a suspect to be referred to prosecutors over the unauthorized use of AI in remote medical services.

"The website violated existing laws and was unrelated to any medical institution," said the police. "It also did not fall under the guidelines established by health authorities for remote medical care."

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom. BY KIM JI-HYE [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]