MEDICAL COUNCIL FEE INCREASE

Following on from previous communication the IMO wishes to advise all members that the meeting with the Medical Council on 24th June was disappointing and indeed the lack of compromise by the Council has now ensured that doctors and the Council are on an inevitable collision course. 

Given the Medical Council is the regulatory body and that no doctor has a choice but to be registered it is all the more incredible that the Council choose to apply an increase at a time when they are well aware of the pay cuts endured by doctors, the issues of rising indemnity costs and the pressures, very often at personal financial cost, to improve and enhance their skills and competence.

The scale and nature of this increase amounts to little more than coercion.  Even in terms of their own communication last week to doctors the so called commitment to maintain fee levels contains a caveat of unforeseen circumstances, which ironically are the same type of circumstances i.e. unforeseen, which has led to this increase.

In a situation where doctors accept their responsibility to pay registration fees and are prepared to pay the 2014 fee level, the intransigence of the Medical Council is not credible.  No compromise, no consideration of the proposals put forward by the IMO, just a straight NO.

It is vital to the success of the campaign that doctors who have not paid do not pay the increased fee. Solidarity among doctors - evidenced by the strength of numbers taking a stand - is the only message that the Medical Council will understand.

It is important to note that paying the reduced amount does not mean automatic removal from the register and consequently it is still possible for you to work. As previously notified non-payment of the fee may trigger a process which takes several weeks to remove non payers from the register. 

To advance the campaign we urge all doctors who have not yet paid to hold off and to follow the guidelines below:

 

1.    Complete the annual retention form on line with the Medical Council

 

2.    Complete and sign the ‘hold the payment’ letter here

 

3.    Make a payment of €535 to Medical Council online through your bank account by Electronic Fund Transfers as outlined below

 

4.    Send the letter and a copy of the payment to IMO through the collection point at the hospital. If you cannot return through the hospital please photo/scan them and send these documents by email to nchdissues@imo.ie or by post to 10 Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2.

 

The success of the campaign depends on you discussing this with all of your doctor colleagues and encouraging them to participate to ensure a clear and unambiguous response. Failure to deliver this message will leave little opportunity to oppose any future registration fee increases that will inevitably be imposed on you to maintain your registration. The Medical Council will no doubt seek to exploit that position.

Please use social media and the level of press coverage to explain to other colleagues and to the general public the reasons behind this campaign. 

In the meantime please continue with your support and encourage your colleagues to join the campaign.

You can make a payment to the medical council through your bank account by using the details below. You must use the electronic payment option on your account and send the payment to the account as detailed. Please make sure to include your medical council number and to label it registration fee.

You can arrange with your bank to transfer the payment electronically. The details to effect this payment are as follows:

 

Name of Bank:                  Bank of Ireland

 

Address:                              175 Lower Rathmines Road, Rathmines, Dublin 6. Ireland

 

Account No:                      64135916

 

Sort Code:                          90-07-54

 

Bank Identifier Code:       BOFIIE2D

 

IBAN: IE57BOFI90075464135916