Nhia head office commissioned

 

Mohammed Saani Ibrahim

 

The National Health Insurance Authority[NHIA] has commissioned its ultra modern state of the art Head Office building in Accra with a call on staff and management to continue to show diligence and  commitment to ensure Ghanaians benefit from the scheme.

In his keynote address, President John Evans Atta Mills commended the Authority for erecting its own office after several years of operating in rented apartments and dilapidated offices.

He assured them of Government's continues support and urged staff and management to justify the hope reposed in them to ensure Ghanaians reap enormous benefit from the scheme.

The President was happy measures are been taken to curb some of the challenges such as corruption, ineffectiveness among others that have characterized the scheme for sometime.

President Mills was also hopeful the scheme would be a positive safe haven and in the end help bring relief in health delivery process to the people of this country.

In his welcome address, Mr. Sylvester Mensah, the Chief Executive of the Authority described the occasion as a significant milestone in the developing story of National Health Insurance Scheme [NHIS].

The Scheme he said has become a significant partner in the healthcare delivery architecture in Ghana today as it currently accounts for more than 80% of internally generated fund in health facilities. He attributed the growing confidence in the scheme to the increasing membership and rising utilization of health care services across the country.

‘'Despite our fallibility and imperfections, HHIS has gained significant international recognition and acclaim for financial risk protection, innovation as well as a hub for international knowledge and experience sharing'' he announced.

The Chief Executive enumerated the challenges confronting the scheme as the long term sustainability of the scheme imposed by rapid growth in utilization, accompanied by high and rising medical inflation without a corresponding increase in inflows.

He however pointed out that Council and Management in response to challenges confronting the scheme put in place a raft of reform initiatives, running concurrently to increase efficiency, improve quality of care, curb and contain escalating costs and secure the long term future of the scheme.

An instituted Clinical Audit as a tool for controlling supply side moral hazards such as wrong application of tariffs, irrational medical prescriptions, quantities inflations of supplied medicines, unfair co- payment, the provision of services above accreditation level and overbilling for medicines among others was introduced in January 2010.

He added that the deterrent effect of the Audit which is a feature of the scheme that is attracting international attention is helping to sanitize the healthcare delivery system by promoting quality of care.

He said the Authority as a measure to check irregularities in premium collection, has set up a consolidated Premium Account into which all premiums collected are deposited and has improved accountability within the scheme's operations.

The NHIA has come a long way from the days when moral hazards and systematic abuses and inefficiencies threatened to bring the scheme to its knees. He described the new environment as a cost saver and that they are in the process of extending it to all their regional offices in order to better serve their subscribers across the country and at a lower operating cost.

With Government's support, collaboration of stakeholder organizations, the goodwill of development partners and all subscribers, we can say that the past has been groundbreaking and difficult, the present challenging, stable and encouraging but the foreseeable future is bright and promising.

 

 

 

 

About the Author

  

     location''    Accra,Ghana     

    Address''    P.O Box NM 199, Nima,Accra,Ghana

   Contact''  00233244722934/00233247569095/00233207182869

     Email''    holland2g2@yahoo.com      

      sex''             male

      D0B''            27th October

   Employer''      The Accra Times[Odrobi Media]

   Position''         Reporter

   Education''       Trans Africa University College[Accra]

  Specialities''      Environmental,Political,Social,Sports,Investigative[reportings]