Health Ministry reminds private medical colleges of November 1 agreement

Kathmandu, April 4: The Ministry of Health and Population has directed private medical and dental colleges and hospitals to ensure that the health workers they have hired, including nurses, are provided with minimum wages and other benefits.     

The Policy, Planning and Monitoring Division under the Ministry recently issued a circular to the Association of Private Health Institutions of Nepal (APHIN) and the Nepal Medical College Association, directing them to implement the agreement reached on November 1, 2025, with the concerned stakeholders.     

The agreement mandates private sector health institutions to ensure that workers have access to minimum wages and facilities. It is reported that the Ministry has received complaints that some institutions have yet to implement the agreement, prompting it to issue the circular.     

As per the agreement, private medical colleges are required to provide nurses and other health workers employed in their teaching hospitals with at least the minimum salary scale of the Government of Nepal’s Fifth Level, which is presently Rs 34,730, effective from the month of Kartik (October–November). Likewise, other private and community hospitals and dental colleges are required to provide 80% of the current salary of Rs 34,730.(RSS)