Doctors strike today: The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has strongly condemned the draft National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill 2017. IMA has announced a nationwide strike between 6 am and 6 pm on January 2. Around 2.9 lakh doctors have come onto the streets to demonstrate against the bill. The bill seeks to replace the apex medical education regulator, the Medical Council of India (MCI), with a new body National Medical Commission (NMC). NMC Bill 2017 was presented in the Lok Sabha on December 29 and is scheduled to be discussed on January 2. OPD services have been affected due to the protest at Vivekananda General Hospital in Karnataka’s Hubli.
While doctors in government and medical college hospitals boycotted out-patient services for one hour in the morning, the strike was being observed from 6 AM to 6 PM in private hospitals. Medicos, however, have decided to attend emergency cases and those admitted to hospitals. The government, however, maintained that the National Medical Commission Bill that seeks to replace Medical Council of India with a new body would be beneficial to the medical profession.
Meanwhile, in Kerala, patients waiting outside General Hospital as doctors boycott outpatient consultation from 9 am to 10 am after Indian Medical Association called for suspending private healthcare services for 12 hours in protest against National Medical Commission Bill. Union Health Minister JP Nadda in Rajya Sabha said that he spoke to IMA yesterday and have heard them and put forth our perspectives as well.
The doctors have termed it as ‘black day’. Parthiv Sanghvi of Indian Medical Association said, “The central government has left us no option but to call it a ‘black day’ in the history of medical profession. ‘No to NMC (National Medical Commission)’ is a slogan for medical community as well as every patient.” No impact of Indian Medical Association strike on Osmania General Hospital, hospital superintendent B. Nagendhar says, ‘in our hospital, there was a call from junior doctors that they would protest from 6 am to 6 pm but practically all doctors have come today’
