Cabinet panel proposes abolition of Ministry of Health

ISLAMABAD: The Cabinet Committee on Rightsizing has recommended abolition of Ministry of National Health.

The Cabinet Committee, headed by finance minister, in its report has proposed that a new division—Social Sector Affairs—should be created. This division should run the affairs of departmental coordination and population welfare.

The administrative structure of the Ministry should be reduced to a single wing headed by an officer of Grade-20. This will affect a large number of ex-cadre and support staff. They will be sent to the surplus pool under the Civil Servants Act.

Some 692 civil servants will be affected by the merger of institutions. They will either be sent to the surplus pool of the Establishment Division or transferred to autonomous and semi-autonomous institutions through legislation. Sixty civil servants will be affected by merging NEHS with RTI. 106 employees will be affected by the merger of National Trust for Population (NATPOW).

It has been recommended that Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore, National Institute of Fertility Control Karachi and FGTB Center Rawalpindi be transferred to the provinces.

Apart from Pims Hospital and Polyclinic Hospital Islamabad, other hospitals of the Ministry and primary health centres and dispensaries managed by the District Health Officer should be run under public-private partnership.

Among these centres of health service delivery are Federal Government Hospital (FGH) and National Institute for Rehabilitation Medicine (NIRM). Cleaning, security and other general facilities of Polyclinic Hospital and Pims Hospital will be outsourced. A single common Directorate of AIDS, TB and Malaria will be established by abolishing or transferring the Directorate of Malaria. The report states as there is duplication in the duties of NEHS, NIH and NDM, the National Emergency Health Services (NEH) will be abolished. Computer programmer, computer officer and computer operator will be given a single designation. Employees like store supervisor and storekeeper or accounts assistant are working in different grades. Now, there will be only one post.

The need to rationalise the ratio of officers and subordinate staff in the Ministry of Health has also been emphasized. The affected officers and employees will be sent to the surplus pool. The report states implementation of these recommendations will improve the quality of public health services and will reduce financial burden on the government. Public-Private Partnerships will improve the quality and efficiency of services.

According to sources, these recommendations will be submitted to the prime minister for final approval.