Fee structure of private medical colleges to stay unchanged

PMDC says will first finalise independent audit of institution

Senate Standing Committee on National Health Services and Regulations in its meeting on Tuesday was told that fee structure of private medical colleges will remain unchanged until PMDC finalises an independent audit of their incomes and expenditures.

The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) had in November reversed a fee hike recommended for private medical colleges after admission violations, binding medical colleges to cap fees at Rs640,000 — a limit set last year. The medical colleges wanted fee hiked to Rs1.3 million.

According to a statement issued by the Senate Secretariat, Senator Sajjad Hussain Turi chaired the meeting held at the Parliament House and was attended among others by senators Kalsoom Parveen, Dr Ghous Niazi, Khalida Parveen, Naseema Ehsan, Mian Muhammad Ateeq Sheikh, Secretary National Health Services and Regulations, and officers from CADD, ICT administration and IMC.

The meeting also discussed the mechanism to control the quality of food, especially supply and sale of substandard and unhygienic milk and poultry in the country.

Islamabad Assistant Commissioner (Rural) Syed Jawwad Muzaffar told the meeting that out of 89 milk samples taken over last year, 60 were below standard and only 29 were satisfactory. The committee was also told that the matters relating to health in the federal capital come under three different departments and are not consolidated under one authority. The committee decided to hear Islamabad chief commissioner, IMC and CADD in the next meeting on the matter.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 6^th, 2017.