NHIA engages private health insurance providers

The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has engaged private health insurance providers, in an effort to expand and provide better healthcare service.

The engagement, which forms part of the NHIS maiden week celebration, was organised to engage with all our stakeholders and also to understand the growing needs of the industry.

Dr Lydia Dsane-Selby, Chief Executive Officer, addressing the forum under the theme: “Growing the private health insurance industry for the future,” in Accra on Thursday, last week, said the gathering was meant to  provide solutions to meet people healthcare needs.

She said NHIS, as a regulator, was poised to help design and provide standards as well as to use innovative approaches to improve the private insurance industry.

According to her, private health insurance has played an important role over the years, yet the current total membership is less than 1% of the population.

Dr Selby added, “It is our desire to ensure increase in membership, hence the need for this lecture.”

The Board chairman of NHIA, Prof Yaw Adu-Gyamfi, on regulative perspective warned that although the Authority wants leverage on numbers to expand it must, however, take precautionary measures in order not to suffer the fate of the financial sector.

Abubakar Kwame Essuman of Bank of Africa, touching on the clients’ standpoint, said good health is tantamount to investment and that is where insurance comes in.

He said as an organisation “we have been having health insurance since 2004. Almost two decades. So we have been through all the issues…”

He, however, added that health insurance comes with great benefits.

Health insurance help improve employees security, it reduces absenteeism, it also prevents people from diverting health allowances for other purposes, it is convenient and cost efficient.

Mr Essuman called for an insurance cover for those who may opt for herbal medicine and also proposed insurance scheme should include prevention or pre-medical attention.

Agnes Emefa, on behalf of Nyaho Medical Centre said there was lack of coordination between partners, propitiators and service providers and that people are turned away when carrying insurance card.

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