Cases of Unauthorised Sale of Drugs for Treatment of Diabetes and Obesity

Ms He Ting Ru asked the Minister for Health in each year of the last two years (a) how many cases of unauthorised sales of GLP-1 agonist drugs for treatment of diabetes and obesity has the Ministry investigated; (b) how many unauthorised listings of such drugs on e-commerce platforms have been taken down; (c) whether there are any prosecutions under the Health Products Act for unauthorised sale of such drugs; and (d) whether there has been an increase in public interest in these drugs driven by endorsement from celebrities and influencers.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs are prescription medicines which can only be dispensed by a registered medical practitioner or a licensed retail pharmacy to a patient with a valid prescription, and are strictly prohibited from advertisements and sales on local online platforms. Since 2022, the Health Sciences Authority has investigated a total of 16 unauthorised sales or illegal advertisements of GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs. Investigations are on-going for most of the cases and no prosecutions have commenced yet. A further 82 non-compliant listings of such drugs were removed from various e-commerce platforms.

The nature of the Internet makes stringent enforcement almost impossible. It is important that consumers avoid purchasing medicines from overseas or unknown sources, including online and through influencers, as these may be unregistered, substandard, or counterfeit, posing significant health risks.