Officials of the Israel Medical Association are quite angry over the flippant attitude exhibited by prospective ministers, none willing to accept responsibility for the Health Ministry.

After Yahadut HaTorah voted to give the chair of the Knesset Finance Committee to Moshe Gafne of the Degel faction, R’ Yaakov Litzman, the Gerre representative, was to accept the deputy health ministry position with ministerial authority, with the minister’s position being held by the prime minister.

Litzman stated if he is not the chair of the finance committee he will not accept any position, and it appears he is making good on the threat. It now appears the ministerial appointment will go to a Likud member, with Minister-without-Portfolio Yossi Peled leading the lists of candidates.

The IMA is questioning why the responsibility for the nation’s healthcare system is being treated as a ‘second class citizen,’ also pointing out that if the ministry is run by a deputy minister, even one with ministerial authority, it will have a negative result on healthcare because the unique situation would leave the ministry at a loss due to various laws and limitations governing the authority of a deputy minister over a ministry.

(Yechiel Spira – YWN Israel)