The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has launched a renewed crackdown on illegal charges by some healthcare providers, describing the practice as a violation of their contract with the Authority and a major threat to the integrity of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
Speaking in an exclusive interview on Oyerepa Breakfast Time, Faustina Dery, Head of Corporate Communications at the NHIA, revealed that a special task force has been set up to investigate and eliminate unauthorised co-payments being demanded from NHIS members across the country.
“The NHIA covers over 95% of the medicines that are supposed to be given to our members for free. However, many of the health providers are not going by the contract between them and the NHIA,” Dery stated.
“The providers are taking co-payments from patients, and that is undoubtedly making the scheme unattractive.”
According to her, the task force is already operational and has begun taking firm action against violators.
In Kumasi, she disclosed, some hospitals have been compelled to refund illegal payments made by patients.
“In Kumasi alone, we’ve forced certain hospitals to reverse money to four patients because they were not supposed to pay anything. We’ve had a lot of receipts from our members who are being charged even though NHIS fully covers their claims,” she said.
The NHIA says the task force will continue to monitor and investigate facilities nationwide and hold defaulting providers accountable.
Dery emphasised that such illegal charges undermine public trust in the NHIS and discourage citizens from enrolling or renewing their membership.
“We’re jaw-jawing with our health providers to resolve this,” she noted. “Our aim is for all Ghanaians to fully benefit from the NHIS without having to pay a dime for covered services.”
Source: Oyerepafmonline.com/Joseph Marfo
