Chinese authorities have ordered major e-commerce platforms to remove 35 online stores operating under the name "Hong Kong Pharmacy" as part of a crackdown on fraudulent medical marketing, the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine has announced.
The stores were found to be selling products such as "Bone Penetrating Ointment" and "Dispelling Dampness Wan" as non-pharmaceutical items while making false claims during livestream sales that they could relieve pain, in breach of mainland regulations. The stores were not actually based in Hong Kong.
Following a probe, platforms including JD.com, Pinduoduo, Xiaohongshu, Douyin and Kuaishou removed 35 unauthorised stores, 3,318 product links and 342 advertisements. A further 460 ad materials were blocked.
In a separate case, 27 doctors from 22 medical institutions across several provinces were found to have illegally promoted the prescription drug "Paidu Qingzhi Graniles" under the guise of health education. All related videos have been taken down.
