Doctors across India went on a 24 hours strike to protest against the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill, 2019.
Junior doctors, who are unhappy with the NMC Bill, called for a strike and withdrew all non essential services at hospitals.
Dr. A. Subrahmanyeswara Rao, the President of the Indian Medical Association of Delhi, on the 30th of July, addressed a press conference and announced the strike, which was scheduled for the 31st of July. The strike began at 6:00 A.M. and will continue till 6:00 A.M., on the 1st of August.
The strike was announced immediately after the Lok Sabha passed the NMC Bill, 2019. According to the NMC Bill, 2019, there will be a Non Medical Commission instead of the Medical Council of India (MCI.) The Bill also proposes a common final year MBBS examination, known as National Exit Test (NEXT.) The test will also be applicable for post graduate admissions in institutions and a student will have to clear the NEXT for a licence to practice medicine.
Apart from this, the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET,) common counselling and NEXT will be mandatory at institutes like AIIMS to achieve a common standard in medical education in India.
The IMA rejected the NMC Bill and justified themselves by saying, “Section 32 of the NMC Bill provides for licensing of 3.5 lakhs unqualified non medical persons to practise modern medicine. The term Community Health Provider has been vaguely defined to allow anyone connected with modern medicine to get registered in NMC and be licensed to practise modern medicine. This means persons without medical background are becoming eligible to practise modern medicine and prescribe independently. This law legalises quackery.”
The IMA further said, “The struggle to redeem the Health of the nation is our privilege and sacred duty. We will never allow licensing unqualified non medical persons to kill our patients. We will never allow our mothers and children to die in thousands forever due to this Black Law.”
The junior doctors called the NMC an ‘anti democratic’ bill as it will affect the health of the poor and also give licence to unverified and trained practitioners to practice medicine in rural areas.
Dr. P.A. Ramani, the Vice President of the IMA and Dr. M.V. Vijaya Sekhar, the most recent President of the IMA, protested against the Bill.
They alleged the Government of playing with the health of people in rural areas.
The junior doctors appealed to all the patients not to visit hospitals during the strike, unless it is an emergency.
Stay tuned for further updates.
