Context

The National Medical Commission (NMC) came into existence, as the Centre dissolved the six-decade-old Indian Medical Council Act 1956.

About

• The National Medical Commission has been set up as the country’s apex regulator of medical education and profession.
• Composition: Dr Suresh Chandra Sharma, retired HoD, ENT, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, has been appointed as the Chairman of the NMC for a period of three years
  • Apart from the Chairman, the NMC will consist of 10 ex-officio members and 22 part-time members appointed by the Central government.

Modalities for Exit Test to be worked out National Exit Test, once finalised, will serve as PG entrance even to institutes of national importance like AIIMS, PGI & JIPMER The NMC is now set to draft the uniform national pattern for MBBS final-year exams to ensure the same level of skills in MBBS graduates all over India Plans afoot to scrap existing system of annual renewal permissions for institutes

Autonomous Boards

• The Centre has formed four autonomous boards under the NMC Act---
  • Under-Graduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB)
  • Post-Graduate Medical Education Board (PGMEB)
  • Medical Assessment and Rating Board
  • Ethics and Medical Registration Board

Functions of NMC:

• To lay down policies for regulating medical institutions and medical professionals.
• To assess the requirements of human resources and infrastructure in healthcare.
• To ensure compliance by the State Medical Councils with the regulations made under the Bill.
• To frame guidelines for determination of fee for up to 50% of the seats in the private medical institutions.

Background

• In 2018, it was decided that the MCI will be dissolved and a new body will take its place, after which the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 was passed in August 2019.
• The change was aimed at bringing in reforms in medical education towards a transparent, qualitative and accountable system.
• The basic change is that the regulator is now 'selected' on merit, as opposed to an 'elected' regulator.
• The government dissolved the MCI in 2018, replaced it with a BoG, which was chaired by Dr. VK Paul, member (health), NITI Aayog.