The Minority in Parliament has called on the Bawumia-led Economic Management Team to urgently instruct the Finance Minister to release and transfer all pending payments to the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). This immediate action is crucial to prevent the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) from encountering a severe financial crisis.
The Minority caucus emphasized the necessity of complying with the National Health Insurance Act (Act 852), highlighting that non-compliance has pushed the NHIS into a critical financial state, endangering its operations.
In a statement on May 24, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, Ranking Member of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health, underscored the urgency of the situation. “The Minority calls on the Bawumia-led Economic Management Team to direct the Finance Minister to release and transfer all outstanding payments to the National Health Insurance Fund by the close of the week to prevent the scheme from being imperiled due to lack of funds,” he stated.
Akandoh also stressed the importance of adhering to the National Health Insurance Act, warning that failure to do so has dire consequences. He revealed that the NHIA is effectively bankrupt, having received no financial support from the Ministry of Finance this year. Additionally, checks at the Bank of Ghana show that the NHIF has less than GHS1.0 million available, highlighting the severe financial strain.
Expressing the Minority’s frustration, Akandoh criticized the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration’s neglect of the NHIS’s sustainability, which has led to its precarious financial position. “This gross and wanton neglect has driven the National Health Insurance Scheme into a precarious financial state, requiring intensive care services to save it from impending and inevitable collapse,” he said.
Akandoh emphasized the need for immediate financial intervention to ensure the NHIS can continue to provide essential health services to Ghanaians.
