People refuse to join insurance scheme

... for fear of dying
Begoro (E/R), Dec. 13, GNA- Reports indicate that some people in the Fanteakwa District are refusing to register with the Mutual Health Insurance Scheme because of the belief that they would die when they attend hospitals after joining the scheme.

Mr Kwadwo Agyei, the Member of Parliament for Fanteakwa, said this in a speech read on his behalf at the second Annual General Meeting of the Fanteakwa District Mutual Health Insurance Scheme at Begoro on Wednesday.

Mr Agyei urged the people to disabuse their minds of such negative belief and join the scheme.

He said some people also complained that their reluctance to join the scheme was the delay by the scheme management to issue out identity cards to registered members on time and urged the scheme to take steps to address those concerns.

Mr Agyei appealed to those who would not be in a position to pay for the registration fee of 120,000 cedis to contact him for assistance. The Reverend Canon Mate-Kwadwo, Chairman of the Board of Directors, said the scheme as at July this year registered 42,525 people, representing 50 percent of the district population.

He said the scheme was progressing steadily and called for closer co-operation of the various stakeholders as well as beneficiaries to contribute to the success of the scheme.

Mr Kwadwo Affram Asiedu, Eastern Regional Minister, appealed to the public to adhere to sound environmental practices. This, he said in a speech read on his behalf, would contribute to sustaining the Health Insurance Scheme and also minimize government expenditure in the Health Sector.

Mr Affram Asiedu said the mutual health insurance scheme had come to stay adding that the cash and carry system of health care delivery would soon belong to the past. 13 Dec. 07