Finally, NMC Announces A Common National Medical Register for All Doctors

New Delhi: Four years after first hinting that there will be a common National Medical Register for all the registered medical practitioners of the country, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has finally announced the formation of the same.

The announcement comes in the form of a gazette notification recently released by the National Medical Commission titled "Registration of Medical Practitioners and Licence to Practice Medicine Regulations, 2023".

The notification spells out that there will be a common medical register titled National Medical Register that will be maintained by the Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB) under the NMC.

This Register will contain all the entries of the registered medical practitioners of all State Registers maintained by the various State Medical Councils. Further, this register will be made public on the official website of NMC and will contain relevant information about a medical practitioner including registration number, name, father's name, date of registration, place of working (name of hospital/institute), medical qualification including additional medical qualification, speciality, year of passing, university, name of the institute/university where qualification obtained.

Apart from this, the notification also makes the passing of National Exit Test (NEXT) compulsory for both Indian and Foreign Medical Graduates for the purpose of registration with the National Medical Register.

It also notes that "Until such time that these Regulations and appropriate sections are in force, licence to practice and prevailing system of Registration shall continue."

Further, each doctor will now have a Unique Identification (UID) Number, which shall be generated centrally by the NMC Ethics Board and thereby grant the practitioner, Registration in NMR and Eligibility to practice medicine in India. The notification also mentions that a processing fee for generation of UID (as prescribed by EMRB, NMC from time to time) shall be payable in favour of the NMC Secretary.

Also Read: Soon, National Medical Register to keep Count of Doctors, their medico-legal contacts: Health Ministry

Procedure for making application for licence to practice medicine:

a) For the purpose of obtaining licence, a person may apply through a web portal of the Ethics & Medical Registration Board containing such details as specified in the electronic format.

b) The eligible person may opt any State/States to practice medicine and the application so made through the web portal shall be referred to the concerned State/ States Medical Council.

c) The State Medical Council shall satisfy themselves and consider the application for grant of licence to practice medicine in that state after charging appropriate fee within a period of 30 days.

d) The certificate of licence shall contain a registration number which shall be formed in such a way that a Unique Identification Number shall be suffixed with a Code of the concerned State/Union Territory.

e) On approval of the application by the State Medical Council, the same shall be reflected in the National Medical Register and also in the State Medical Register.

The Commission also notes down that any additional qualification will be registered in the register after application to the State Medical Council and verification of the same by the State Medical Council. Once verified, the State Medical Council (SMC) shall issue a new registration certification with the same number incorporating the additional qualification. A similar entry will also be made in the National Register.

Besides, the notification also notes down the process of renewal clearly noting that a licence to practice is valid only for five years, after which all doctors will have to apply for renewal to the State Medical Council.

NMC has also laid down the process of registration of additional qualifications, renewal of licence to practice medicine, transfer of licence to practice, removal and restoration of registration, transitory provisions, denial of licence to practice among others.

Following are some of the details:

Registration of Additional Qualifications:

i. As and when a Registered Medical practitioner, obtains additional medical qualification recognized under the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 shall apply to the concerned State Medical Council for entering additional medical qualification against his/her name in the State Register/National Register.

ii. After scrutiny of the application for Additional Qualification (s), a new Registration Certificate, with the same number, incorporating the additional qualification (s) and the date of entering the additional qualification, shall be issued to the applicant.

iii. On registration of additional medical qualification in the State Register, the entry thereof shall automatically be made against the name of the medical practitioner in the National Register.

iv. A licenced Practitioner with registered Additional Qualifications shall be allowed to practice in the field of specialization/super-specializationcommensurate with additional knowledge and skill obtained, as applicable to the additional qualification anywhere in India with all its privileges as the case may be.

v. The details of the period of validity of the Certificate shall remain as in the original certificate with a mention of date incorporating the additional qualification (s).

vi. Before, the National Register comes into force the existing system of the registration of the additional qualification shall continue.

Renewal of licence to practice medicine:

i. The licence to practice medicine issued to a registered medical practitioner shall be valid for a period of Five years after which the medical practitioner shall have to renew the licencing by making an application to the State Medical Council as per the procedure specified under clause 6 (ii) of these Regulations.

ii. The application for renewal of licence may be made before three month of expiration of the validity of licence.

iii. Provided that if no application is received within three month of expiration of the validity of licence, the entry of the name of the medical practitioner in the State Register shall be converted as inactive and the person shall not be entitled to practice medicine. The entry of the status – ‘inactive’ made in the State Register against a medical practitioner, shall automatically reflected in the National Register.

Transfer of Licence to Practice:

i. If any medical practitioner registered with the State Medical Council, desirous to practice medicine in another State may apply to the concerned State through the web portal of the Ethics & Medical Registration Board in accordance with the procedure specific in Clause 6(ii) of these Regulations.

ii. On submission of an application for transfer of Licence to Practice, an intimation shall be received by the State Medical Council where the medical practitioner is registered for practice and the State Medical Council within a period of 30 days shall approve the application for transfer of Licence to Practice, if it has no objection thereon.

iii. If no decision is taken within 30 days of receipt of the transfer of registration the same shall be deemed to have been approved.

iv. On receipt of an application for transfer of Licence to Practice by the State Medical Council of the state where the medical practitioner desires to practice, shall subject to the requirement of clause (i) and (ii) above, issue aLicence to Practice certificate to practice medicine in that state. Provided that the unique number of the registration shall remain the same and the prefixed Code of the concerned State/Union Territory shall be substitute with the Code of the new State/Union Territory.

v. The changes made in respect of the State, shall automatically reflected in the National Register.

Removal and Restoration of Registration:

i. If the name of a registered medical practitioner is removed from the State Register under the provisions of the Regulations framed by the National Medical Commission, permanently or temporarily, the State Medical Council concerned, shall make an entry against the name of the concerned medical practitioner for the effect in the State Register.

ii. On restoration of name of any registered medical practitioner in the State register under the provision of the Regulations framed by the National Medical Commission, the State Medical Council concerned, shall make an entry against the name of the concerned medical practitioner for that effect in the State Register.

iii. The entries made for removal or restoration of name in the State Register, shall automatically reflected in the National Resister.

Transitory Provisions:

All the existing medical practitioner enrolled in the Indian Medical Register or the State Medical Register, not having the registration number as per these Regulation shall update in the web portal of the Ethics & Medical Registration Board within aperiod of three months of publishing of these Regulation and obtain the Registration Number as a onetime measure and the licence so generated shall be valid for periodof five years from the date of issuance. For the purpose of updating of licence of such medical practitioner, no fee shall be charged by EMRB, NMC.

Denial of Licence to Practice:

i. If the application of a candidate for grant of licence to practice /for renewal is rejected by the State Medical Council on any ground, the applicant concerned may file an appeal to the Ethics and Medical Registration Board against the decision of the State medical Council, within thirty days of receipt of such decision.

ii. Such an appeal may be submitted to the Secretary, National Medical Commission along with the following: a. Original application submitted to the State Medical Council. b. Copy if order/communication received from the State Medical Council for rejection of the appeal. c. A written application contending the grounds of rejection. d. A processing fee (as prescribed by EMRB, NMC from time to time),in favour of the Secretary, NMC.

iii. The Ethics and Medical Registration Board shall examine the appeal and take a decision within thirty days. If the appeal is allowed by the Ethics and Medical Registration Board, it may pass an order for the State Medical Council to grant licence to practice to the applicant and the order so passed by the EMRB shall by binding on the State Medical Council. In such case, the State Medical Council shall forthwith and not more than fifteen days of receipt of such order, shall grant licence to practice to the applicant.

iv. In case, the first appeal is rejected by the EMRB, the applicant may file a second appeal to the NMC, within a period of sixty days from receipt of communication form EMRB. If the appeal is allowed by the NMC, the procedure specified under clause 12 (iii) shall be followed. The decision of the NMC shall be final.

To view the regulations, click on the link below:

https://medicaldialogues.in/pdf_upload/registration-of-medical-practitioners-and-licence-to-practice-medicine-209679.pdf

Also Read: Licence to Practice Medicine in India: NMC Guidelines