The Government has expressed grave concern over the suspected resale of public hospital patients’ medicines on an online platform.

Stressing that the matter will be dealt with seriously, the Government said the Department of Health is liaising with the Hospital Authority to investigate the alleged illegal sale of unregistered pharmaceutical products, adding that prompt enforcement action will be taken as appropriate.

The Government emphasised that the department has an established mechanism to monitor the sale of health and pharmaceutical products in the Hong Kong market.

It added that its preliminary understanding is that the case involves Lactulose, a pharmaceutical product which does not contain any substance listed in the Poisons List under the Pharmacy & Poisons Regulations and is categorised as a “non-poison” medicine which does not require a prescription nor the supervision of a pharmacist for sale.

The Government explained that, under the Pharmacy & Poisons Ordinance, all “pharmaceutical products” must satisfy certain criteria on safety, efficacy and quality, and must be registered with the Pharmacy & Poisons Board of Hong Kong before they can be sold or distributed in the city. Moreover, medicines classified as Part 1 poisons under the ordinance should only be sold by pharmacies and under the supervision of registered pharmacists.

Illegal sale or possession of unregistered pharmaceutical products or Part 1 poisons are criminal offences under the ordinance, and subject to a fine of up to $100,000 and two years’ imprisonment.

Where the department detects the suspected illegal sale or possession of pharmaceutical products, it promptly investigates, and, if necessary, conducts joint operations with other law enforcement agencies. Any irregularities are dealt with in accordance with the law.

From 2020 to June 2024, the department’s Drug Office handled 209 conviction cases involving illegal sale or possession of unregistered pharmaceutical products or Part 1 poisons.  

​The department also deploys publicity and education including materials, including “General Knowledge on the Use of Medicines” and “Be Cautious when Buying Medicines on Internet”, to remind the public to refrain from purchasing or using products with unknown or dubious ingredients, or from unknown sources.