Ghana Medical Trust Fund launched

The Ghana Medical Trust Fund was on Tuesday launched in Accra to provide financial relief for persons living with Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), also called chronic diseases.

The Fund, known as Mahama Cares, will focus on covering the cost of treating chronic conditions like cancers, diabetes, hypertension related complications, cardiology issues, chronic kidney failure, and stroke at the specialist level.

Its support for beneficiaries will be selective, targeting the gaps not currently covered by the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

A facility-based data from three teaching hospitals in Ghana shows that the average annual treatment cost for NCDs is approximately GHS 53,000 per patient.

This financial burden severely strains households, with over 65 per cent of affected families facing catastrophic health expenditures.

Mr Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, the Minter of Health, speaking at the launch,  noted that the Ghana Medical trust fund will offer a transformative opportunity to protect lives, preserve dignity and strengthen the health system.

The Fund would mobilise resources to finance and support the treatment of Non-Communicable Diseases while pursuing capacity-building initiatives to expand access to specialist care, with a strong emphasis on early screening and diagnosis.

“The Ghana Medical Trust Fund, also known as Mahama Cares, is a step towards greater equity and compassion in healthcare financing, it will serve as a lifeline for those burdened with chronic illness and position Ghana as leader in innovative, people centred and compassionated healthcare reforms,” the Minister said.

He said the increasing NCD cases among Ghanaians, especially the youth, posed a serious risk to public health, which demanded urgent attention.

He stressed that the NCDs crises must not be ignored as swift and decisive action was crucial to mitigate its impacts and safeguard the well-being of the communities.

Mr Akandoh said individuals diagnosed with chronic diseases had a 75 per cent likelihood of falling into poverty within five years.

Those battling kidney and cardiovascular diseases, in particular, spent 70–95 per of their total non-food expenditure on healthcare, a clear indication of the devastating economic toll, he added.

The Ghana Medical Trust Fund, the Minister said, aligned with Ghana’s key sectoral policy frameworks, including the National Health Policy (2020), Ghana’s Roadmap for Attaining Universal Health Coverage (2020–2030), the Essential Health Services Package (2022–2030), and the National Policy on Non-Communicable Diseases (2022).

Mr Akandoh said a draft bill for the establishment of the Mahama Cares Fund was ready and would be submitted to Parliament immediately after its short recess.

He said the primary obstacle in implementing the Mahama Cares, which was the capping of the National Health Insurance Fund, had been removed.

The World Health Organisation says NCDs are not passed from person to person, they are of long duration and are the result of a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors.

Available estimates from the WHO indicate that non-communicable diseases remain a leading global health challenge, responsible for 75 per cent of non-pandemic-related deaths worldwide in 2021.

The WHO further reports that low- and middle-income countries continue to bear the heaviest burden, accounting for 73 per cent of all NCD-related deaths, primarily due to cardiovascular diseases, cancers, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes.

In Ghana, NCDs account for approximately 43 per cent of all-cause mortality, with a significant rise recorded between 2012 and 2023.

Presently, individuals aged 18–45, the most productive segment of Ghana’s population, constitute over 50 per cent of NCD cases, impacting both public health and economic productivity.

Source: GNA

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