Following the cases of violence against doctors, MK Gideon Sa'ar re-submitted a bill to increase the punishment against attackers of medical staff. According to the proposal, the maximum penalty for assaulting medical staff during medical treatment will increase from 3 years in prison to 5 years, and it will be classified as a " crime".
This is a bill that passed the first reading already in the previous Knesset, but it is necessary to submit it once more in order to apply the law continuously and continue the legislative procedures.
Protest against violence in the health system (archive), photo: None
The amendment to the law further states that it will apply to every "caregiver" according to the Patient's Rights Law, so that it will also include medics and paramedics of first aid organizations such as MDA and Rescue Union.
Today, a 5-year prison sentence is imposed for attacking medical staff, only if the attack was carried out during an emergency operation and only if it was directed against certain medical staff.
The proposed amendment applies the stricter punishment to assaults committed during any medical treatment, and if they were directed against different types of therapists, including health professionals.
Former Minister of Justice MK Gideon Sa'ar: "The purpose of the bill I submitted is to deal with the cases of violence against the medical staff in the hospitals which has become a scourge of the state.
We are witnessing more and more serious cases of attacks on doctors and medical teams.
"We must fight a brutal war with violence in general and the serious phenomenon of attacking medical staff in particular. A severe and deterrent punishment will adequately reflect the severity of this phenomenon. I call on Justice Minister Levin to act immediately for the continuous application of the law on the bill that I initiated and passed in first reading in the previous Knesset and to complete the legislation without delay".
were we wrong
We will fix it!
If you found an error in the article, we would appreciate it if you shared it with us