The President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Dr Osahon Enabulele, has called on the National Assembly to ensure the speedy passage of the National Health Bill.<\/p>\n
He made the call while briefing newsmen in Abuja on Monday to discuss the outcome of the association\u2019s national executive meeting, held in Nasarawa State from Dec. 9, to Dec. 16.<\/p>\n
Enabulele said that this call was necessitated by the recent protest march held against the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu in Abuja.<\/p>\n
He said that the march was an attempt to scuttle the passage of the National Health Bill (NHB), which he said was a veritable tool for transforming the health care system of Nigeria.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe NMA calls on the distinguished members of the National Assembly, to resist any vacuous act of blackmail and intimidation in their consideration of the NHB.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut to be guided at all times by international best practises and the need to secure health dividends of democracy for the poorest of the poor,” he said.<\/p>\n
The NMA president said that the bill had passed through the first and second readings in the House of Representatives and in the Senate.<\/p>\n
The association also called on President Goodluck Jonathan to reconstitute the governing board of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), to enable it perform its statutory regulatory functions.<\/p>\n
He added that if the council was granted a protected tenure, there would be sustained progress in the regulation of medical and dental practises.<\/p>\n
The association also called on the Federal Government to accelerate public-private partnership in the health care sector.<\/p>\n
The NMA president said that it remained a veritable tool for improving service availability, productivity and delivery in the sector.<\/p>\n
Enabulele said that there had been a heavy burden of taxation on the salaries of health care workers, hence, an increased level of restiveness and job dissatisfaction.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe NMA calls on all tiers and levels of government, the Ministry of Finance, FIRS, Joint Tax Board, all state internal revenue boards, to review the current taxation of salaries of health care workers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Commenting on polio eradication, the president called on state governments in polio high risk states, to engage the services of members of the NMA in their states and boarder states.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is to ensure polio comes to an end for the benefit of Nigerians and in line with global commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said that NEC also suspended Dr A. A.G. Jimoh, for allegations levelled against him by some patients, over his inappropriate handling of their fertility case.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe would be referred to the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria for necessary action,\u2019\u2019 He said.<\/p>\n
He said that association was saddened by the death of the Kaduna State Governor, Patrick Yakowa, Gen. Owoye Azazi, and the four others, who died on Saturday.<\/p>\n
The NMA president, however, urged Nigerians to drive carefully during the festive season and called for faster rehabilitation of roads and other means of transport in the country.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Dr Osahon Enabulele, has called on the National Assembly to ensure the speedy passage of the National Health Bill. He made the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7587,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7582","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n