NHIS crisis: Parliament summons Health Minister

Health Minister, Sherry Aryittey has been summoned to appear before Parliament’s committee on health over the current financial crisis crippling operations of the National Health Insurance Scheme.

Chairman of the Committee Joseph Yieleh Chireh who disclosed this to Joy News, said they also had informal discussions with Finance Minister, Seth Tekper on Tuesday over delays in releasing monies accrued from the Health Insurance Levy.

The invitation was necessitated by the denial of services to NHIS card bearing members by some mission hospitals over unpaid claims of over 50 million cedis and fears that other service providers might soon join the action.

Joseph Yieleh Chireh even though said the Committee is worried about the development, he pointed out that there is little they can do, if government has no money.

Meanwhile, Former Director General of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Elias Sory, is challenging government to demonstrate commitment to salvage the scheme.

Dr Sory, a former board member of the National Health Insurance Authority, said managers of the scheme are not doing Ghanaians good by hiding the truth.

“I have been a board member and I know at onetime we had to borrow money from the bank to pay, the releases were not on time, we have to be frank that it is not coming.

“...We should take politics out of Capitation, it is one of the best known payment mechanism the world over.”

The Health Insurance Authority has however directed NHIS card bearing patients denied services to visit government hospitals. But NHYIRA FM’s Ohemeng Tawiah reports that some public health facilities in Kumasi are contemplating taking money before treatment.

Meanwhile, the Christian Health Association of Ghana is declining further comment on their decision not to attend to patients. Its leadership says it does not want to be dragged into any debate.