11082025-WMA Letter to Prime Minister of Hungary
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WORLD MEDICAL ASSOCIATION
ASSOCIATION MEDICALE MONDIALE
ASOCIACION MEDICA MUNDIAL
CIB Immeuble A “Le Keynes” Website : www.wma.net Postal Address :
13-A Chemin du Levant Telephone : (33) 4 50 40 75 75 CS 5001
01210 FERNEY-VOLTAIRE Fax : (33) 4 50 40 59 37 01210 FERNEY-VOLTAIRE
France E-mail address : wma@wma.net France
H.E. Viktor Orbán,
Prime Minister of Hungary
1357 Budapest, Pf. 1.
E-mail: miniszterelnok@mk.gov.hu
11 August 2025
Your Excellency,
I am writing to you on behalf of the World Medical Association (WMA), the global federation of National
Medical Associations representing millions of physicians worldwide. The WMA plays a key role in
promoting good practice, medical ethics and medical accountability internationally.
We have been informed of increasing pressure on the Hungarian Medical Chamber (MOK), whose rights are
being systematically restricted, including through the transfer of ethical oversight from the Chamber to a
government-controlled body and the discriminatory removal of compulsory membership. The pressure
reached its peak when Péter Takács, the State Secretary for Health, openly questioned the very existence of
the Chamber during a recent interview, referring to an alleged “foreign-directed political network”.
These allegations and continued pressure are a source of great concern to us. The Hungarian Medical
Chamber has been a trusted member of the World Medical Association for many years, recognised for its
commitment to public health and the protection of patients and physicians, with the utmost respect for the
ethical values of the profession. Such public attacks on an organization with democratically elected
leadership seriously undermine the independence of physicians, one of the essential foundations of medical
care, to the detriment of the health and well-being of the Hungarian population.
We witness the integrity and loyalty of the Hungarian Medical Chamber and its representatives to the
Hungarian patients and the Hungarian population and consider that these allegations are an insult to the
entire medical profession. We therefore urge you to immediately cease this unfounded and dishonest
campaign against our Hungarian colleagues with whom we express our solidarity.
Your sincerely,
Dr Ashok Philip,
President of the World Medical Association
Copy: Permanent Representative, H.E. dr. Bálint Ódor, Permanent representation of Hungary to the
European Union (sec.beu@mfa.gov.hu)