Senate health panel passes key bills

ISLAMABAD: In a crucial move toward modernizing the healthcare framework in Pakistan, the Senate Standing Committee on National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination on Wednesday unanimously approved several significant legislative proposals, including bills for centralized health data integration, mental health reform, and healthcare cost regulation.

Chaired by Senator Amir Waliuddin Chishti, the meeting at Parliament House brought together key lawmakers and senior officials, including Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal.

A prominent discussion centered on Senator Saleem Mandviwala’s bill seeking amendments to the National Institute of Health (NIH) law to establish a national cancer registry. Highlighting the absence of centralized data on cancer types and prevalence, Mandviwala criticized the government’s inaction despite repeated assurances.

Minister Mustafa Kamal acknowledged the bill’s importance, informing the committee that the proposal had already been forwarded to the Ministry of Law and Justice for legal vetting.

He elaborated on a parallel federal initiative to launch a unified health ID card system in collaboration with Nadra, aimed at linking health records with national identity cards.

“We are in the final stages of agreement with Nadra, and once formalized, the project will be completed within three years,” the minister said.

The committee unanimously passed the bill, receiving strong backing from senators, including Humayun Mohmand and Irfan Siddiqui, who emphasized that the health system should not wait for perfection to act.

Addressing the issue of fee regulation in private medical colleges, the minister revealed that a special committee under the deputy prime minister had finalized a structure, capping annual fees at Rs18 lakh, with conditional allowances for up to Rs25 lakh.

The third-party review would determine whether a college qualifies for the higher fee cap, while colleges would be allowed a maximum increase of Rs5 lakh annually.

The committee also greenlit the Mental Health (Amendment) Bill, 2025, introduced by Senator Samina Mumtaz Zehri. Citing a deeply disturbing incident from Nawabshah where a mother killed her children, she underlined the urgent need for clear postnatal mental health protocols.

Minister Kamal admitted to the lack of structured guidance for practitioners and pledged to issue psychiatric care guidelines within a week for federal health institutions.

He added that Pakistan’s mental health system mirrored broader national deficiencies and stressed the need for immediate federal implementation. The bill was passed with full consensus.

Senator Mohsin Aziz’s Islamabad Healthcare Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2025, aimed at standardizing diagnostic test pricing, drew concern over the unregulated cost disparities among laboratories. Aziz criticized the lack of progress since January and argued against equating rural labs with those in Islamabad.

The minister acknowledged the legitimacy of the issues raised, admitting that while laws exist, enforcement is weak. He requested one month to devise and implement an effective regulatory framework. The committee agreed to defer the bill for further review.

The Pakistan Psychological Council Bill, 2025, introduced by Senator Kamran Murtaza, was briefly discussed and recommended for submission to the House, pending review by the Ministry of Law and Justice.

Separately, former deputy chairman Senate Mirza Muhammad Afridi protested the drastic reduction in medical seats allocated to Fata students — from 333 to 194. He alleged inequity in the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council’s (PMDC) seat distribution and called for immediate rectification, including relaxation in merit criteria for attendance delays.

The health minister assured the committee that 333 seats had been earmarked for the upcoming academic session and that efforts were underway to implement the original allocation.

The meeting also witnessed a spirited exchange over alleged corruption within the Pakistan Nursing Council.

Minister Mustafa Kamal admitted the institution needed surgical reform, likening it to a tumor requiring removal.

He committed to taking decisive action and said political interference had weakened the backbone of nursing services.

Senator Humayun Mohmand warned that influential lobbies within politics were shielding corruption in nursing. “We need your support for change,” Kamal told committee members, adding he would personally approach them if his efforts failed.

Concluding the session, Chairman Chishti praised the ministry’s commitment to improving public health and advised that concerns raised regarding PMDC’s examination regulations be taken up in the committee’s next sitting.