• Rajya Sabha has passed the “National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professional Bill, 2020” by voice vote on March 16, 2021.
• The Bill seeks to regulate & maintain the standards of education & services by allied & healthcare professionals.
• The bill was passed with the aim of fulfilling the long-pending demands for the sector. The bill will create an institutional structure in order to enhance the employability.
• It will benefit around 8 to 9 lakh existing allied and healthcare professionals. With the implementation of the bill, these professionals will be more ready to cater the global shortage and demand of 1.80 crore professional by 2030 which was predicted by WHO global workforce report.
• It also provides for regulation and maintenance of the standards of education & services by allied & healthcare professionals. It also provides for the assessment of institutions and maintenance of the central and state register. The bill also seeks to create the system in order to improve the research & development and adoption of the latest scientific advancement.

Allied & Healthcare Professional

• Allied and healthcare professions include a huge range of workers to diagnose, evaluate and treat the acute and chronic diseases. These health professions further work to optimise the patient outcomes.
• They also look after the overall prevention, promotion, wellness and management of the diseases.
• The Allied and Healthcare Professions Bill, 2018, was introduced in Rajya Sabha in 2018. It then referred to the Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee. The committee recommended several amendments. 
• Thus, the bill was withdrawn and a new Bill called the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Bill, 2020 was introduced which incorporated the recommendations made by the panel.