Comedian Park Narae is facing growing allegations that she received medical procedures from a person known as the 'injection auntie,' and the Korean Medical Association Organization has classified the matter as 'illegal unlicensed medical practice,' taking a hard line. In addition, SBS's 'Curious Story Y' has directly asked for tip-offs, and the controversy has entered a phase of fact-finding.
On the 8th the Korean Medical Association Organization (hereafter KMA) said in an official press release that "the recent media reports related to the famous entertainer Mr. Park and the 'injection auntie' case are matters that violate the Medical Service Act and the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act and seriously threaten public health," and urged the government and investigative authorities to conduct a thorough investigation.
The KMA said that, based on a check of the association's internal databases (DB), the person known as the 'injection auntie,' A, was determined not to hold a domestic medical license. A KMA official told OSEN, "Everyone in Korea who holds a medical license is registered in the KMA DB," and "there is no possibility of having a domestic license and not being in the association." The KMA said, "This matter is a clear case of unlicensed medical practice in violation of Article 27 of the Medical Service Act," and emphasized, "Nonmedical persons without medical licenses cannot perform medical acts under any circumstances, and the essence must not be obscured by dressing it up as 'home visits' or 'visiting medical care.'"
The KMA said in particular, "There are indications that controlled psychotropic drug clonazepam and prescription drug trazodone, for which proxy prescriptions and non-face-to-face prescriptions are prohibited, were used," and "investigative authorities must thoroughly determine how those drugs were delivered to nonmedical persons and whether there were illegal proxy prescriptions by medical institutions." It also demanded severe punishment for suppliers involved in pharmaceutical distribution.
On the same day, the production team of SBS's 'Curious Story Y' also said on its official social media, "We are waiting for tips about Mr. Lee, the 'injection auntie' suspected of giving Park Narae an IV injection," and announced that it had begun full-scale reporting.
This controversy intensified after Park Narae's former managers raised legal disputes. The former managers filed for a provisional seizure of real estate in court, claiming that while working at Park Narae's one-person agency they suffered verbal abuse, assault, proxy prescriptions, forced personal errands, and unpaid hosting fees. The impact grew when it became known that Park Narae had been accused of proxy prescriptions and violation of the Medical Service Act.
Park Narae's side has denied allegations of illegal medical practice, saying, "The medical person known as the 'injection auntie' administered nutrient injections in the form of house calls." Regarding the former managers, they countered, "Severance pay was paid properly, but they later demanded an additional 10% of company revenue, and when that was refused they pressured with false claims, so we decided to take legal action."
A, identified as the 'injection auntie,' recently claimed on personal social media, "I studied back and forth in Inner Mongolia 12 to 13 years ago and worked as the youngest professor at Pogang Medical University Hospital." However, the Group of Doctors Wanting a Fair Society (Gonguimo) said in a statement on the 7th that "the 'Pogang Medical University in Inner Mongolia' mentioned by A is a non-existent ghost medical school," calling the credibility of the claim into question.
Gonguimo said, "That medical school cannot be found in any Chinese government or medical education accreditation body records," and explained, "Even if someone graduated from a Chinese medical school and holds a Chinese medical license, Korea does not grant eligibility to sit for the national medical examination to graduates of Chinese medical schools." In other words, they argue, practicing medicine in Korea would be illegal under any circumstances.
As the controversy spread, Park Narae issued a personal statement on the 8th and announced she would suspend broadcasting activities. She said, "I believe everything is my fault and I deeply reflect," and "I will suspend all broadcasting activities until this is resolved."
Amid the KMA's hard-line stance, the investigative program's call for tips, and sharply divergent positions among the parties and organizations involved, the 'injection auntie' allegations are taking on significance beyond a simple entertainment world controversy, expanding into questions about the overall medical order. Attention is focused on the investigative authorities' judgment and fact-finding through additional tip-offs.
[Photo] OSEN DB
[OSEN]