The National Health Insurance Authority in Sunyani East Municipal of the Bono Region has announced a significant achievement in its performance review, organized by the Municipal Directorate in Sunyani on Thursday.
Alhaji Abu Appiah, the Sunyani East Municipal manager of NHIA, revealed that the municipality emerged second out of 12 districts in the Bono Region, with a remarkable score of 105%.
Furthermore, the district has successfully enrolled 90% of subscribers into the scheme, achieving universal coverage, attributing to strategic measures, including free registration for vulnerables, mass registrations at key locations such schools, and other gathering centers.
The municipal manager said public education through radio stations and community engagement significantly contributed to this achievement, pledging to continue outreach efforts to encourage individuals to subscribe to the scheme.
Despite this success, Alhaji Abu Appiah highlighted challenges faced by the NHIA, including co-payment, lack of bus to convey vulnerables for registration, and inadequate funding, which hinder their activities.
He told Kaakyire Kwasi Afari of Sunyani-based Ark fm that faulty air conditioning systems at the municipal offices pose health concerns for workers and cause damage to equipment due to excessive heat.
He also bemoaned poor telecommunication networks at some health facilities, preventing them from accessing the NHIA system, hence appealing for support from the government and philanthropists to address these challenges.
Finally, he encouraged NHIA subscribers to link their Ghana Card with their NHIA card, revealing that the Ghana Card will soon be the sole card to access healthcare with a cautioned against healthcare facilities rejecting linked Ghana cards.
Mr. Paul Twumasi, Deputy Secretary Private Health Facility Bono Region & Director of Health Way Medical Limited called on the National Health Insurance Authority to ensure that it paid private providers on time to help address the issue of co-paying.
He said that private health facilities are unable to pay their workers, utilities, and drugs due to government’s failure to pay arrears of claims on time, stressing that the delay in payment was pushing private health providers to the brink of collapsing.
Twumasi, in his request, urged the Ministry of Health and the government to provide a dedicated store for private health facilities to buy drugs on credit and called for an end to SSNIT and Ghana Revenue Authority’s harassment over default.
Dr. Albert Amankwah, Chairman of the Bong-Ahafo branch of the Society of Private and Medical Dentist Practitioners, is also advocating for a collaborative effort between NHIA and healthcare providers to ensure the sustainability of the health insurance, citing the numerous benefits NHIA subscribers receive from the policy.
In his separate appeal, Dr. Amankwah urged the government to deploy health workers to various health facilities to help address unemployed nurses’ syndrome.
Furthermore, he revealed that private health facilities are willing to negotiate with the government to establish salary payment plans for nurses and doctors who will be deployed to these facilities.
Source:Mybrytfmonline.com/Kaakyire Kwasi Afari, Ark FM, Sunyani.
