Regulate plastic surgery centers

About 200,000 faces have been ruined because of plastic surgery from 2002 to 2012, according to China Consumers' Association figures. Since supervisory organs don't take action, the underground product chain keeps churning out fraudulent products and running people's lives, says an article in Beijing Youth Daily. Excerpts:

China Central Television has exposed the supply chain of fraudulent materials for the plastic surgery industry. Other media outlets too have exposed many unlicensed plastic surgery centers. But even the severe damage, including mutilated faces, psychological trauma and at times death, caused by spurious plastic surgery centers has not dampened Chinese women's longing to look "more beautiful" overnight.

The industry employs 20 million people, and its revenue is 300 million yuan ($48.7 million) with a growth rate of more than 40 percent a year.

Media reports say the supervisory organs have not taken action to regulate the industry. For instance, they have not banned deceptive advertisements or placed the plastic surgery centers' management in the hands of commercial and public health departments. Also, the food and drug administration has not been supervising the supply of medical equipment and medicine to the plastic surgery industry.

Legislation for the plastic surgery industry has to be strengthened because the existing rules, formulated in 2002, are inadequate to solve the problems that the fast-changing situation gives rise to. Therefore, new legislation has to be passed to effectively manage the problematic plastic surgery industry.