A.D.U. calls for compensation of facilities affected by NHIS capitation

The Ashanti Development Union is calling for the government to compensate all health facilities in the Ashanti region whose operations have been run aground by the capitation payment system under the National Health Insurance Scheme.

The capitation system which has been scrapped by the Nana Akufo Addo administration effective August 1st was designed to hook each NHIS subscriber to a health facility for a fixed amount of claims on a range of out-patient services.

According to the union, several health facilities have been adversely affected by the system which advanced a fixed amount of two (GHc2.00) cedis per patient compared to thirteen cedis (GHc13) released for other regions where the Ghana Drug Related Grouping (GDRG) system was still implemented.

In a release signed by the Executive Director of the Ashanti Development Union Edmond Oppong Peprah, the union calls for the government to conduct an assessment of all institutions that have been affected.

The statement noted, “Facilities in the region have been adversely affected by the capitation policy. Some have been totally ruined. There is the need for an assessment of the adverse impact of capitation on facilities:

The group is also calling for the government to consider a compensation package for all such health providers whose facilities have either collapsed or suffered an irreparable impact on their operations after this assessment.

“It is worthy of note that all over the country, health providers are given thirteen cedis per patient as service fees under the Ghana Drug Related Grouping. Yet in Ashanti, this was two cedis. This had been highly discriminatory and had ruined businesses. ADU will suggest a compensation package to mitigate the losses of such facilities,”