Ghana heading back to ‘cash and carry’ due to NHIA debts

pulse-ghana admin

February 12, 2018 11:58 PM

The Health Insurance Service Providers Association of Ghana (HISPAG) has warned that the country could soon return to the days of 'cash and carry'.

Ghanaians could soon be revisiting the days of ‘cash and carry’ when it comes to healthcare delivery due to government’s failure to provide funds to run the

This is according to the Health Insurance Service Providers Association of Ghana (HISPAG), who are unhappy about the lack of funding from government to support the programme.

The NHIS was introduced by the erstwhile John Kufuor administration, with an aim to make healthcare delivery affordable to all Ghanaians.

However, the scheme has faced some challenges in recent years, with funding not forthcoming. Also some health providers have not received their arrears between 10 and 20 months.

HISPAG, though, has warned that some Health facilities that accept the National Health Insurance Card could soon be charging patients before they attend to them.

National Communications and Operations Director of the Association, Joseph Christian Amoah, lamented the current situation insisting the ‘cash and carry’ system could soon return.

He explained that some health providers are currently in debt because government has not paid their arrears, which they would in turn use to pay off their own suppliers.

He said President Akufo-Addo’s claims during the State Of the Nation Address (SONA) that the NHIS is gaining the confidence it lost under the past administration has worsened their relationship with debtors.

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According to him, the healthcare delivery system can collapse if payment claims are politicized, whereas the situation is not so on the ground.

“If care is not taken healthcare is going to collapse very soon…since 2015 that tariffs were reviewed including drugs till date drugs are not being reviewed, tariffs are not being reviewed and all these things are problems to the provider,” Mr. Amoah told Accra-based Starr FM.

“After the provider renders services, the provider too is not paid, you are putting pressure on the provider and if care is not taken cash and carry will come back very soon…this is a real cancer…so they shouldn’t politicise payments of claims and other things.”

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