Cosmetic surgery platform takes firm hand with illegal agencies, doctors

SoYoung, China's leading online platform for cosmetic surgery, is stepping up efforts against illegal agencies and doctors on its platform, as a part of its concerted efforts to tighten regulations in the freewheeling industry.

Since May 21, SoYoung has prohibited 58 agencies that violated regulations and 14,685 doctors who conducted surgeries they were not licensed to perform. The platform also handled 12,099 medical aesthetic products that were illegal or did not follow its regulations.

Buoyed by growing demand, China's industry of cosmetic surgeries and medical aesthetic products is on the rise.

According to consulting firm iResearch, China's market for cosmetic surgeries and medical aesthetic products reached 176.9 billion yuan ($25.4 billion) in 2019.

"The industry is booming, but it also has an increasing number of illegal clinics and doctors," said Lai Zhen, a senior analyst at iResearch.

"In 2019, there were about 13,000 licensed cosmetic surgery agencies in China, but the number of illegal agencies exceeded 80,000. Legal cosmetic surgery agencies only accounted for 14 percent of the industry's total. Among legal agencies, there are still about 15 percent that have operated certain surgeries their doctors were not licensed for," Lai said.

Zhu Meiru, deputy secretary-general of the Chinese Association of Plastics and Aesthetics, said she hoped for a more regulated market for cosmetic surgeries and medical aesthetic products, and called for joint efforts from agencies, doctors, press, consumers and third-party platforms to promote proper regulations for more sustainable development of the industry.