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The CEO of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr. Da-Costa Aboagye, has unveiled his vision for driving the NHIS towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC)with a strong emphasis on promotive and preventive medicine packages, Dr. Aboagye aims to revolutionize health-seeking behaviour of Ghanaians.
Dr. Aboagye emphasized that his past experiences in the health sector have motivated him to focus on four key pillars, focusing on promotive and preventive medicine packages to be included in the NHIS Benefit Package. He stressed that addressing the social determinants of health, through promotion and prevention, is crucial for the success of any health insurance scheme.
To promote preventive healthcare, Dr. Aboagye plans to introduce a yearly free basic medical check-up for all active NHIS members. Additionally, members will receive a text message on their birthdays reminding them to visit a hospital for this package.
He also highlighted the NHIS's efforts to strengthen its collaboration with the National Identification Authority (NIA) by providing support to onboard 6.3 million children between the ages of 6 and 14 by providing them with Ghana Cards and deepening the partnership for NHIS members to link their Ghana card with the NHIS card.
This can be done through the *929# short code or the MyNHIS App. Dr. Aboagye encouraged the public to use this platform to integrate and fully benefit from the NHIS and the free basic health screening package.Dr. Aboagye's focus also includes reducing illegal payments charged to NHIS members when they visit health facilities.
His strategy involves reviewing the NHIS medicines tariff and seeking approval from parliament for automatic price adjustments, considering current inflation rates.
This will be accompanied by public education to ensure a better understanding of the new policy.Regarding payment of claims, Dr. Aboagye revealed that the NHIS has worked hard to clear all old debts owed to health facilities, demonstrating the scheme’s compliance with Act 852. Lower-tier facilities which constitute the highest provider category, have been paid till December 2023 while the upper tiers will be settled within a few weeks to be at par.
Addressing the need to cover dialysis for kidney patients, Dr. Aboagye acknowledged that while NHIS does not currently cover dialysis, there is a growing demand for the Scheme to address this issue. An emergency seed fund to support needy patients was recently approved by Parliament to address the concerns and reduce the burden on patients while the Scheme works on a lasting solution through actuarial assessments.
In a related development, Dr. Da Costa Aboagye has been appointed Chairman of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Africa, which further demonstrates his commitment to improving healthcare delivery and promoting preventive healthcare measures for the NHIS.
Story : Angela Asiedu
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