The Ondo State House of Assembly has officially passed a bill to amend the University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital (UNIMEDTH) Law of 2019.
This development followed the presentation of a report by Dr. Christopher Ogunlana, Chairman of the House Ad-hoc Committee on Health, during a plenary session led by Speaker Olamide Oladiji.
After successfully passing the second reading last week, the bill was referred to the Ad-hoc Committee for detailed examination. Dr. Ogunlana reported that all typographical errors were identified and corrected.
He explained that the amended law is designed to improve medical service delivery in Ondo State and create new opportunities for healthcare professionals within the teaching hospital.
The law also aims to increase access for local students to utilize the hospital’s advanced facilities for academic and research purposes.
Key changes in the bill include reducing the Chairman’s required experience from 20 to 10 years post-registration, with a focus on expertise in medical and clinical matters.
The term “Authority” has been replaced with “Agency,” and appointments now require the Governor to select one health sector expert from each senatorial district.
Other adjustments specify that the CMAC will oversee training, add representatives from the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria and the Ondo State Drug and Health Commodity Management Agency, and introduce a renewable four-year tenure for the Chief Medical Director.
Additionally, the State Government is required to issue a Certificate of Occupancy for 7.21 hectares of hospital land to the Federal Government, to be included in the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
The Majority Leader, Oluwole Ogunmolasuyi, moved for the bill’s final reading and approval, supported by Nelson Akinsuroju.
Speaker Oladiji praised the bill, highlighting that the establishment of the FUTA Teaching Hospital will encourage competition, create jobs, and increase the state’s Internally Generated Revenue.
The Assembly unanimously approved the bill into law.