Court upholds 45-day suspension for Korean medicine doctor who prescribed expired medication
Published: 23 Feb. 2026, 10:37
![A sign in front of the Seoul Administrative Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, is pictured on Nov. 30, 2020. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/02/23/41cb061b-c640-4d4b-a892-f5fbe4da12f7.jpg)
A sign in front of the Seoul Administrative Court in Seocho District, southern Seoul, is pictured on Nov. 30, 2020. [YONHAP]
A Seoul court upheld a 45-day suspension for a traditional Korean medicine doctor who prescribed an expired drug, rejecting the doctor's claims that the violation was minor.
The Seoul Administrative Court dismissed the doctor’s lawsuit on Dec. 4 last year seeking to overturn the disciplinary measure after authorities reduced it once, according to the legal community on Monday.
“Unlike physicians or pharmacists, Korean medicine doctors are responsible for prescribing and administering medications. Using drugs past their expiration date runs counter to the basic moral standards and professional ethics expected of a Korean medicine doctor," the court ruled.
The doctor, who runs a clinic in Seoul, prescribed a drug to a patient on Nov. 15, 2022, even though its 36-month shelf life from the date of manufacture had expired about a month earlier on Oct. 7, 2022. The patient reported the case to a local public health center after discovering the expiration date.
Health authorities found the doctor had violated regulations governing proper drug use, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare initially imposed a three-month suspension.
The doctor challenged the penalty in court and won in November 2024. In line with that ruling, the Health Ministry reduced the suspension to one month and 15 days.
The doctor filed another administrative suit, arguing that the violation resulted from "simple negligence and amounted to a minor offense." The doctor also said the punishment was excessive compared to similar cases under the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act and given the limited risk to the patient’s health.
The court disagreed.
“More than three full years had already passed since the date of manufacture, so the degree of blame cannot be considered light,” it said. “Even if there was no intent, the breach of the duty of care in the course of professional practice cannot be seen as minor.”
The court noted that Korean medicine doctors directly dispense herbal preparations at their clinics, which it said warranted stricter responsibility.
“The patient avoided any adverse health effects only because the patient noticed the expiration date first and chose not to take the drug," the court said. "The doctor did not discover the issue in advance, initiate a voluntary recall or report the matter.”
The court dismissed the doctor’s claim that the Health Ministry failed to consider mitigating factors, saying, “Those issues were already corrected through the earlier ruling.”
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 BO-REUM [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.
Standards Board Policy (0/250자)