MoH releases GH¢1.2m to health insurance providers

The Ministry of Health (MoH) has released GH¢1.2 million to be disbursed to health insurance providers across the country.

The money, which was released through the National Health Insurance Fund, is to help the providers deliver quality health care to beneficiaries under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

The Public Relations Officer of the MoH, Mr Tony Goodman, told the Daily Graphic that the amount was to settle half of the arrears owed the service providers since September last year.

Currently, there are over 3,500 health insurance providers, both public and private, in the country.

Mr Goodman expressed the hope that the money would go a long way to help reduce the expenditure of the providers and consequently enable them to provide good services to Ghanaians.

Funding

Apart from the premium paid by members, the district mutual health insurance schemes receive regular funding from the central government, which is drawn from the National Health Insurance Fund. 

Every Ghanaian worker pays two-and-a-half per cent of his or her social security contribution into this fund, while the VAT rate in Ghana also has a two-and-a-half percentage component that goes into the fund. 

Services provided

The most popular health insurance policy is the district mutual health insurance scheme, which is operational in every district in Ghana. 

It is a public/non-commercial scheme and anyone resident in Ghana can register under this scheme. 

The district mutual health insurance scheme also covers people considered to be indigent — that is, the too poor, and those without jobs and lacking the basic necessities of life to be able to afford insurance premiums. 

Writer’s email: naa.bentil@graphic.com.gh