Group of Ministers to look into concerns over draft medical commission bill

NEW DELHI: The government has constituted a Group of Ministers (GoM) under Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to look into concerns raised by some states and stakeholders over the draft National Medical Commission Bill 2016.

The bill seeks to replace the Medical Council of India (MCI) with a new commission to steer medical education in the country.

"The government has formed a GoM under Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to look into the concerns raised by some states and doctors on the draft National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill 2016. The GoM will meet on March 20 and submit its report in 15 days," a senior government official said today.

The draft National Medical Commission Bill, 2016, will be placed before the Cabinet after the GoM submits its report, the official added.

Last year, a high-level committee headed by Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman Arvind Panagariya looked into the issue of poor regulation of medical education by the Medical Council of India (MCI) and proposed replacing it with a new commission.

Besides Panagariya, the panel included Prime Minister's Additional Principal Secretary P K Mishra, Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant and Union Health Secretary.

After approval, National Medical Commission will become the main regulatory body and will take overall roles and responsibilities of MCI.

The new body will have eminent doctors and experts from related fields to steer medical education in the country so as to ensure the quality of education is at par with global standards.

Last year, a Parliamentary committee had called for revamp of MCI, saying it has failed in its role as a regulator which has led to a downfall in India's medical education system.