Private-public partnership is key to accelerating Universal Health Coverage - Dr. Maxwell Antwi

Dr Maxwell Akwasi Antwi, Country Director of PharmAccess Foundation, has stated that there is a need for the public sector to join hands with private operators to deepen Universal Health Coverage.

According to him, even though the public sector has a lot of mileage in health insurance policies, its growth can be complemented by efforts from private outfits as well.

Dr Maxwell Antwi noted at a stakeholders seminar on Monday that, there are lessons from both sectors that can advance Universal Health Coverage, hence the need for both wings to build bridges in terms of regulation, advocacy, and other relevant aspects.

“The word is collaboration, and it was one of the cross-cutting themes throughout all the discussions”, he stressed.

Emphasising the need for stronger ties between both sectors, he said, “Each entity is doing great in their own space”.

Dr Antwi continued, “The public sector is doing great work with the National Health Insurance Authority; having 52% of the population of Ghana as active members”.

“So it really tells you how big that momentum is and how we’re growing very well and the great work that the Ministry of Health and the NHIA and all the partners have worked into”, he added.

He further intimated in a JoyNews interview that the PharmAccess group is one of such committed private outfits, poised to partner the government to advance the cause of Universal Health Coverage.

Dr Antwi’s concerns were also emphasised by other stakeholders who participated in the one-day seminar at the Alisa Hotel.

The event was under the theme, “Achieving Universal Health Coverage – role and contribution of private sector health insurance”.

It was organized by Nationwide Medical Insurance, in collaboration with the PharmAccess Group.

In attendance were stakeholders in the health industry who shared their views on how to make Universal Health Coverage more successful and sustainable.

In a panel discussion which formed part of the event, notable industry players took turns to express their views on how healthcare in general can be taken to the next level.

The discussants included the Industry Lead for PHIAG, Ronald Oppong; Operations Manager for PharmAccess Foundation, Dr Gifty Sunkwa-Mills; Board Member of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr Isaac Morrison; Senior Vice President (Africa) of Zipline Africa, Daniel Margo, and CEO of Claron Health International, Dr Dennis Addo.

The session was moderated by the Acting Director of Corporate Affairs of the NHIA, Oswald Essuah-Mensah, with a focus on the theme for the event.

The participants diagnosed some problems in the industry and advanced some solutions to mitigate the highlighted challenges.

In a related development, the Chief Executive Officer of Nationwide Medical Insurance, Nancy Naa Ampah, also stressed the need for private and public sector players to pool their strengths to boost healthcare delivery.

“Private health insurance could be the oil to achieve Universal Health Coverage by 2030, and also we need to be more innovative. The private insurance sector should be very innovative in its approach to healthcare financing”, she added.