‘We will protect the health fund with all our being’ – NHIA Boss

The Chief Executive Officer of the National Health Insurance Authority, Dr. Samuel Yaw Annor has hinted of plans to introduce more stringent measures in the regulation of the National Health Insurance Scheme as part of efforts to protect funds.

According to him, the current management of the scheme seeks to tighten up every loophole that gives some people the chance to steal from the scheme.

“We have come up with four major measures that I believe will help seal every loophole in the system, these measures are; move the $25 per person a year to $100 which is the international standard; move from receiving claims manually to digital; put in place a strict internally disciplinarily measures that looks after the members of the authority and service providers and the patients themselves because some patients connive with some services providers to do certain things that are not right; the four measure is to amend the NHIA laws to make compulsory imprisonment term against anyone caught disbursing NHIA funds” he said

According to him, the NHIA health fund is the life wire of the country and therefore, members of the authority will protect it with all their being.

“That is why a signal was sent to Takoradi about somebody who was jailed for 10 years and another 5 years for stealing from the fund and that is how the trend will be until all of us as a country agree that health fund is not an area to play with” he said

Dr. Annor made these pronouncements during a courtesy call on the National Chief Imam, Sheikh Dr. Osmanu Nuhu Sharubutu at his residence in Accra on Thursday, July 12.