NMA rejects court ruling giving FCCPC power to probe medical negligence
The Nigerian Medical Association has rejected a Federal High Court ruling that affirmed the powers of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission to investigate complaints of medical negligence. The court, in a judgment delivered in Abuja on April 15, upheld the FCCPC’s authority to probe healthcare providers over alleged failures in service. In a statement, the Lagos State branch chairman of the NMA, Dr Babajide Saheed, described the ruling as surprising and troubling. He argued that Nigerian law already gives the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria exclusive responsibility for regulating medical practice, ethics and disciplinary cases, including negligence. Saheed warned that allowing an external agency such as the FCCPC to investigate medical negligence could create overlapping mandates, institutional clashes and inconsistent standards in handling sensitive healthcare matters. He said negligence cases often involve complex clinical issues that require […]