Koforidua hospital denies payment of hospital bills by NHIS holder

Koforidua, Oct. 3, GNA - Management of the Koforidua Regional Hospital has denied reports that the holder of a National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) card was made to pay for his registration and drugs when he visited the hospital.

Speaking at a press conference at Koforidua on Thursday the Director of the Regional Hospital, Dr Obeng Apori, said Kofi Serebour Bismarx visited the hospital on September 8. He consulted a medical officer and was prescribed Artesunate/ Amodiaquine, Paracetamol, Vitafol and Artem and Naclofen injections. Dr Apori said Artesunate/Amodiaquine and Paracetamol are covered by the NHIS and so were given to Bismarx without any payment but was made to pay three Ghana cedis for the Vitafol which was not covered by the NHIS.

He said Bismarx bought the Artem and Naclofen injections from a pharmaceutical shop outside the hospital and brought them to the hospital and were administered at the hospital. Bismarx therefore paid for only the Vitafol which cost three Ghana cedis and not six Ghana cedis as being claimed in the publication. He said the management of the hospital appreciated the fact that the NHIS could face some problems in its implementation especially at its formative years and welcomes suggestions that could help in its implementation.

Dr Apori appealed to clients of the hospital who have problems to report to heads of the departments or to any member of the management committee and urged journalists to give management of the hospital the chance to state their part of the story before publication.