Appeals against state medical council decisions: EMRB refers NMC Act interpretation to health ministry
National Medical Commission
New Delhi: Amid ongoing confusion and repeated rejection of appeals by non-medical practitioners against decisions of the State Medical Councils, the Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB) of the National Medical Commission (NMC) has now placed the responsibility for the decision with the Health Ministry.
ET has reported that the Ethics Board of the Apex Medical Commission issued an office memorandum on May 20 and said that it was the Central Government that had enacted the NMC Act and "any interpretation relating to the provisions of the said Act may appropriately be undertaken by the Ministry."
Information obtained via RTI application revealed that since 2020, when the NMC replaced the erstwhile Medical Council of India (MCI), it had rejected 256 appeals filed by non-RMPs but heard 185 appeals by doctors against decisions of State Medical Councils.
Also Read: NMC takes up issue of appeals against state medical council decisions
Earlier this year, the Union Health Ministry had asked the National Medical Commission (NMC) to take appropriate action, as per law, about the issue of deciding appeals filed by non-Registered Medical Practitioners (RMPs) against the decisions of the State Medical Councils.
Action from the Union Health Ministry came after the issue was raised by Health Activist Dr. KV Babu, who submitted a representation before the Ministry regarding the interpretation and applicability of Regulation 8.8 and Regulation 1.9 of the MCI Ethics Regulations, 2002 read with the provisions of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019.
Writing to the Ministry, Dr. Babu had sought directions to NMC Ethics Board to decide appeals filed by non-Registered Medical Practitioners against the decisions of State Medical Councils. He had also requested the Ministry to set up an appropriate body to examine the alleged acts of omission and commission by certain Registered Medical Practitioners for contravention of Regulation 1.9 of the MCI Ethics Regulations, 2002.
NMC had been rejecting the appeals by non-medical practitioners as per Section 30(3) of the NMC Act 2019 which states, "(3) A medical practitioner or professional who is aggrieved by any action taken by a State Medical Council under sub-section (2) may prefer an appeal to the Ethics and Medical Registration Board against such action, and the decision, if any, of the Ethics and Medical Registration Board thereupon shall be binding on the State Medical Council, unless a second appeal is preferred under sub-section (4)."
Over the last couple of years, Dr. Babu has been contending that the patients have the right to fille an appeal against the SMC rulings under Section 8.8 of the Ethics Regulations, 2002.
Section 8.8 of the MCI Ethics Regulations 2002 states, "Any person aggrieved by the decision of the State Medical Council on any complaint against a delinquent physician, shall have the right to file an appeal to the MCI within a period of 60 days from the date of receipt of the order passed by the said Medical Council: Provided that the MCI may, if it is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from presenting the appeal within the aforesaid period of 60 days, allow it to be presented within a further period of 60 days."
Following the Health Ministry's directions, NMC Ethics Section told the doctor through an official email communication on February 5, 2026, that the matter was being examined, indicating that the regulatory body is reconsidering the issue of patient appeals in cases of alleged medical negligence and misconduct.
As per the latest media report by the Economic Times, NMC EMRB has now shifted the responsibility of taking a decision in this regard to the Health Ministry, stating that the NMC Act was enacted by the central govt and “any interpretation relating to the provisions of the said Act may appropriately be undertaken by the ministry”.
Also Read: Health Ministry asks NMC to act on appeals against state medical council decisions
