Prime
Ministry of Health needs Shs80b to deploy medical interns
The Minister for Health, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng presents during plenary session on June 22, 2023. PHOTO/ PARLIAMENT
What you need to know:
- The minister’s remarks on the House floor came days after a group of pre-intern medical doctors early this week marched to Parliament where they handed the Speaker, Anita Among a petition protesting their delayed deployment.
The Minister for Health, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng has said her ministry needs Shs80.4 billion to facilitate deployment of 1,901 medical interns who are still waiting to undertake the training.
“For 1,901 interns we require Shs80.4 billion to deploy them, and out of that money, Ministry of Finance gave us Shs8 billion for interns and Shs2 billion for senior house officers. So, we are not able to deploy until we are sure that the Shs80.4 billion will be provided,” Dr Aceng told MPs during plenary session on Thursday.
She also noted that her ministry had received Shs22.9 billion to pay arrears of the 935 interns who completed training in April 2023 but were not paid their allowances and the senior house officers who have been working for four months without pay.
The minister’s remarks on the House floor came days after a group of pre-intern medical doctors early this week marched to Parliament where they handed the Speaker, Anita Among a petition protesting their delayed deployment.
Ms Among had asked the Prime Minister, Robinah Nabbanja to ask the relevant government authorities to implement pledges made to settle the persistent demands of the intern doctors in the country.
Ms Among also asked the PM to file a report on the deployment of the interns which would help legislators plan well during budgeting.
During Thursday’s plenary session Ms Among tasked the government not to only clear the arrears but also plan for the 4,000 pre-intern medical doctors who are about to finish studies ahead of their internship training.
