NMC Bill – a  betrayal for doctors?

The NMC Bill seeks to replace the Medical Council of India (MCI) with a National Medical Commission. This sounds like the old adage where the cure is worse than the disease.

The main controversy surrounding the new Bill is that it also allows practitioners of alternative medicines, or AYUSH doctors (Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) to practice allopathy after completing a bridge course.

Countrywide shutdown by IMA called off

The Indian Medical Association (IMA), which includes doctors from government hospitals, Corporate Hospitals, Polyclinics and nursing homes had called for a 12-hour shutdown or “Black day” of all private hospitals in the country on Tuesday, January 2^nd to protest the “anti-people and anti-patient” NMC Bill.

Many health experts opine that the right thing to do now is to empower the basic M.B.B.S doctors to do more for the government by allowing them to do common services like doing caesarean section and anaesthesia.

After the government conceded to some extent by referring the Bill to the Parliamentary standing committee, the IMA called off its strike. Another contentious issue of the new bill is the proposal to conduct an exit test for all outgoing M.B.B.S students.