NHIS debt : Less than GH₵200m arrears left of GH₵1.2 bn sum - Deputy Health Minister

The Deputy Minister of Health, Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu has disclosed that government will settle the 1.2 billion cedis debt owed service providers under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) by the end of the year.

According to Mr Gyedu, of the 1.2 billion sum inherited from the NDC administration, only 181 million was left to be settled.

The Minister on the sidelines of a Centre for Democratic Development stakeholders dialogue on health said competency and efficiency in the management of public health facilities contributed to the massive reduction in the debt.

"Currently, if you look at the budget we have in parliament now, we have cleared the debt and we have 181 million that is coming from the prior years which we hope to clear this year.

"When we took over last year in 2017 January, the accumulated debt that we inherited is 1.2 billion. Over the last one year, we have paid almost a billion and we are left with less than 200 million to go.

He said the government had tabled several proposals pending approval from cabinet which will ensure that the debt does not return.

"You know, we have secured sources as we speak now and I personally chaired a review committee that also came with other proposals but because are in the form of a cabinet memo I don't want to go public with them.

"The Chief Executive (of the NHIS) has mentioned some of them in his rounds... we are talking about increasing the percentage of the VAT that goes to the NHIS, the NHIL, we were looking at moving it from two-and-a-half percentage points to three-and-a-half percentage points. We are also restructuring the SSNIT so the employee will pay four percent and the employee will pay only one percent. Because parliament hasn't approved it, I can't speak to them".

The Minister said he was aware that Ghanaians were not keen on paying more taxes but the new management system would ensure that accountability is increased in the utilisation of the scarce NHIS resources.