Dr Alan Stout, who chairs the British Medical Association’s (BMA) Northern Ireland Council, said the establishment of the new committee had come as a surprise.
“We actually haven’t been consulted on it or it hasn’t been discussed with us before,” he told News NI.
“There is a real scepticism that the last thing that we need is yet another committee, more reports and more evidence, whenever we have a wealth of evidence, a wealth of reports that are telling us and have been telling us for 10 years what we need to do.”
He said the committee can not be “another layer of review” at a time when “definitive decisions” needed to be taken quickly.
“We are seeing massive problems right across our service, right across every trust, every hospital, general practice,” he said.
“We’re seeing transformation by collapse at the moment.”
Sinn Féin MLA Philip McGuigan, who chairs Stormont’s health committee, said the proposed reconfiguration committee “could ensure public confidence in future decisions”.
That, he said, was dependent on it being “genuinely independent, has access to all relevant evidence and ensures the voices of clinicians, patients, healthcare workers and local communities are heard.”
He said he will now ask for further detail on its remit, membership and the timeframe for establishing the new committee.
McGuigan added; “We need reform, but it must be properly funded, planned on a whole-system basis and undertaken with the best for patient outcomes, regardless of where they live, as the desired outcome.”
Alliance MLA Nuala McAllister said Butler’s decision to establish a new committee proves he is a “caretaker health minister who will dodge difficult decisions”.
“We urgently need to drive forward reconfiguration with evidence-based decision-making, and bring people with us on that journey through strong political leadership.
“Instead, we have more dither, delay and risk of unplanned service collapse,” she said.