The Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has described as ill-conceived the plan by the Federal Government to stop funding the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN).
The NMA warned that the plan could only lead to disaster in the country’s healthcare sector.
Dr Uche Ojinmah, the National President of the association, said this during a press conference in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, held as part of activities marking the 2023 NMA Physicians’ Week in the state tagged ‘This Is Our Chance To Get It Right’.
The Federal Government had, through a June 26 circular from the Budget Office, announced its decision to stop funding some organisations, including the MDCN, effective from January 1, 2024.
Dr Adewale Lasisi, the Oyo State chairman of the NMA, who delivered Ojimah’s address, said the job of the MCDN that regulates the medical and dental practice is so important that the Federal Government could not but fund it.
The association had earlier called on the government to immediately commence the payment of the recently reviewed Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) and Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) with their arrears and also the accoutrement allowance for medical doctors and dentists.
It also appealed to the Oyo State Government to approve and immediately implement the upward review of hazard allowances for state doctors and other healthcare workers in the state as already applicable in most states in the region.
