The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has directed the service providers under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to continue accepting patients with NHIS cards as it continued the process of finding ways of reimbursing them.
“Taking into consideration the challenges facing the NHIS, which are being addressed, I wish to direct all medical facilities under the Ghana Health Service to continue to accept the NHIS card for service delivery, Dr Ebenezer Appiah Denkyira, the Director-General of the GHS, gave the directive in a statement signed, issued and copied to the Ghana News Agency.
“I wish to use this opportunity to inform all stakeholders that government is taking the necessary steps to address the challenges facing the scheme in the shortest possible time,” he added.
The directive came after a marathon meeting involving the Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Victor Asare Bampoe; the Director General of the GHS, the chief executives of the various teaching hospitals, the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) and the Society of Private Medical and Dental Practitioners.
Earlier this week, the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG) and the Ghana Health Service (GHS) issued a threat to suspend the issuance of medicines to NHIS subscribers.
Dr Denkyira, in an interview, confirmed this and added that although the hospitals would attend to patients, they would not be offered medicines.
He explained that some of the facilities had been taken to court for owing the pharmaceutical companies, saying that, the companies had written to the GHS that they could no longer offer credit facilities and described this as an unfortunate situation.
The Ministry of Health, in another release issued and copied to the Ghana News Agency, assured the public, especially the NHIS, that “irrespective of the current challenges facing the scheme, it was still a national health financing policy, which sought to provide quality health care to the vulnerable in society”.
It said, “Notwithstanding the various challenges currently being faced by the authority, we are collaborating with the other agencies in the health sector to ensure quality health care”.
The release, signed by Mr Tony Goodman, the Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Health, noted that providers at the meeting all agreed to endeavour to accept the NHIS card wherever possible.
Parties at the meeting, the release said, pledged their efforts to guarantee the long-term sustainability of the health insurance scheme and their passion to build a world-class health insurance scheme.
Source: GhanaWeb
