Forum on Health Insurance Scheme moves to Ho

Ho, Aug. 13, GNA - Mr Kwasi Owusu-Yeboa, Volta Regional Minister, on Wednesday said the proposed National Health Insurance Scheme would guarantee universal access to basic health which previous schemes failed to provide.

He said free medical care, partial recovery, as well as, full recovery schemes in the past had failed to be sustainable and were characterised by serious imbalances that cut out many people from health facilities on account of cost.

Mr Owusu-Yeboa was speaking at the fifth in a series of forums on the National Insurance Bill for all regions by the Joint Parliamentary Select and Standing Committees on Health and Finance to solicit contributions to the bill, which is before Parliament.

The programme is facilitated by the Legal Resources Centre with funds from USAID.

The Minister told the packed Ho District Assembly Hall, comprising District Chief Executives (DCEs), Trade Union Activists, representatives of workers including the security services that, "we all have to devise a system to open health care to all".

Mr Owusu-Yeboa said in the Volta Region, there already existed traditional welfare schemes working for the mutual support of members during hard times.

He, however, expressed regret that those schemes were more concerned about insurance for a befitting burial and not quality of life.

"I think we should be thinking about what is happening to us before we die, the quality of life we lead and not the type of burial we would have", Mr Owusu-Yeboa stated.

He called for unblemished contribution to support the bill and not catch phrases of dissent, saying, health was the primary source of wealth for every country.

Dr Kweku Afriyie, Minister of Health, said all forms of health insurance including private, social and health organisations would still be tenable after the enactment of the bill.

He said the proposed District Mutual Health Organisations, which would form the nucleus of the scheme, would be subsidised and supported under an agreed formula.

Dr Afriyie said the benefit package was being worked out but was emphatic that it would include all levels of care provided by the District Hospitals and additional care at the tertiary level. Mr Kweku Agyeman-Manu, Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Planning said sources of funding included premiums by members, a 2.5 percent of workers' contribution to the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) and Insurance Levies on some non-basic commodities.

Mr Moses Asaga, Ranking Member for the Finance Committee, said the key issue was not the structure of the Scheme, but the methods and modes of financing.

He criticised the proposal for a National Health Levy, saying it was equivalent to Value Added Tax (VAT), adding that the scheme must be sustainable at all times.

Majority of contributors expressed concern about the proposed use of workers 2.5 percent social security contribution for the Scheme saying, that decision might affect their overall benefits during retirement.