The Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Accra West Region, has threatened to disconnect Ridge Hospital over Ghc333,664.18 debt.
A letter dated February 4, 2015 and signed by Ing. Abdulai Kurah, General Manager of ECG, and addressed to the Officer-in-Charge of Ridge Hospital said other debt recovery measures would be pursued to fully recover the debt.
“Furthermore, legal action will be taken against you if we do not hear from you within the said seven days,” the letter which was written on February 11, 2015 said.
The letter warned the hospital to make arrangements to pay the debt within seven working days from the day of receipt.
This implies that the hospital has up to today to settle its indebtedness to ECG.
When contacted, Medical Director of Ridge Hospital, Dr Emmanuel Obeng Apori, said the facility receives 44% of its income from the cash-and-carry system whilst the remaining 56% comes from the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
He said claims from the NHIS take a while to be processed, thereby affecting the financial status of the hospital.
He stated that though power supply to the hospital is not bad, compared to what pertains in other places, the hospital spends up to Ghc6,000 daily on fuel to run its generator.
Dr Apori, therefore, appealed to ECG to give the hospital some dispensation so that lives would not be lost, adding that the only solution is for a stakeholders’ discussion to find lasting solutions to the crisis.
“Institutions should be made aware so they can budget for that, but first and foremost, the government should be prepared to clear the pending debt, after which we can now begin to see if we can factor utility bills into our charges.”
Dr Apori expressed surprise at ECG’s threat to cut power to a strategic institution like the Ridge Hospital.
