Fake Alert: Viral Whatsapp Message asking to register on NMC portals sending doctors on a frenzy

New Delhi: A message asking doctors to apply for their Unique Identification Number on the National Medical Commission's (NMC) portal by August 10, 2023, that has gone viral on whatsapp has indeed created a frenzy amongst medical practitioners 

Doctors are worried over a recent message, which is being circulated on social media platforms asking doctors to apply for their Unique Identification Number on the National Medical Commission's (NMC) portal by a deadline of August 10, 2023.

While this message has created panic among medical practitioners, a member of the Apex Medical Commission has informed Medical Dialogues that the deadline mentioned in the message of the deadline is fake.

This situation of confusion and uncertainty is linked to the "Registration of Medical Practitioners and Licence to Practice Medicine Regulations", which were published in the Gazette of India on May 10, 2023.

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that in the Gazetted notification, NMC announced its decision of having a National Medical Register for all registered medical practitioners. The Commission also mentioned how the doctors in India will now have a Unique Identification (UID) Number, which shall be generated centrally by the NMC Ethics Board.

According to Section 6(a) of the NMC Regulations, in order to get a licence to practice in India, the medical practitioners will have to make an application through a web portal of the Ethics and Medical Registration Board. Previously, doctors were claiming that no such web portal was notified by the Commission.

Further, in the Gazette notification, NMC gave only three months of time to the existing medical practitioners to update in the web portal of the NMC Ethics Board.

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

"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 a period 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," read the Regulations.

Therefore, considering the three-months time period mentioned in the NMC Gazette notification, the deadline for existing practitioners ends on August 10, 2023. However, there has been no notification in this regard by the NMC.

Taking note of the deadline At this outset, a viral message, claimed, "Everyone has to apply for UID on EMRB portal." It further stated that "Last date for existing practitioners 10 August 2023."

This created panic among doctors and they rushed to the NMC portal to register themselves as per the Regulations. Along with the message, a link of the NMC portal also started circulating. The link opens a page for doctors to register for duplicate, additional and Good Standing Certificate only. On the page, there was another link for the doctors to verify their IMR details. 

The next page mentioned, "This section of our website publishes the Registered Doctors with the various State Medical Councils across India upto to the year 2021."

"To search the database for Registered Doctors , please enter / Select the Name, Qualification, Registration Year, Registration No, Registered Council that you want to search, given below," it further mentioned.

When asked about this viral message, a member of NMC told Medical Dialogues that the information is fake. Referring to the link on the NMC portal, the NMC member further clarified that the link was there already and it was nothing new and not related to what is claimed on the viral message.