Parliament must find solutions to NHIA problems – Majority leader

General News of Saturday, March 30, 2019

Source: citinewsroom.com

2019-03-30

Majority President Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu stressed the need for Parliament to find solutions to the problems facing the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).

He made this suggestion as a result of minority concerns regarding what she called the NHIA's decision to engage in "unnecessary spending".

According to minority health spokesman Kwabena Mintah Akandor, the allocation of about 5 million GHC funds from the NHIS to corporate social responsibility represents nothing more than a waste at the same time that the system is struggling.

The program would also have allocated 300 million GHC to ICT infrastructure and 10 million GHC to restructuring, among others.

The concerns of the minority follow the claims of the Cape Coast Hospital regarding the non-payment of health insurance claims covering millions of Ghanaian cedis.

Speaking in Eyewitness News, Kyei Mensah Bonsu stressed the need for the minority and the majority to discuss and propose a cure for these problems.

"We should seek to improve the landscape of the NHIS and all these statutory funds. We should all talk about the issue. I agree that we should put them back on track. As Parliament, we should come together and solve this problem.

"In the future, we should meet and question these issues closely. The national interest should compel us. We should meet and make a firm decision. The burden lies on the house. Let us discuss and debate. Then we can invite the Minister of Health and the Secretariat and talk to them about it. When we are done, we can then determine what needs to be done. "

The Daily Graphic reported that the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) owed GH ¢ 6.15 million to the University Hospital of Cape Coast for the services this facility provided to patients under the NHIS.

The amount represents eight months (May to December 2018) of claims submitted to NHIA.

Dr. Lydia Dsane-Selby, Acting Director General of the NHIA, however, downgraded the debt of 6.175 million GHc due to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital (CCTH).

"I think it's not as bad as it's claimed," said Dr. Dsane-Selby at Thursday's Citi Breakfast Show.

The 6,175 million GHc represent costs for six months, she also noted.

"We have to remember that their monthly bill is around one million cedis, so the 6 million GHc is about six months, so it's not like we have years and years."