Takoradi Health Insurance Scheme makes strides…Registers 3,045 applicants in a week’s promotional activity

THE Takoradi Mutual Health Insurance Scheme (TMHIS) has
held a week's promotion to register residents of Takoradi and it environs, who fall within the scheme's umbrella, to benefit and access the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

The promotion thus saw the office of the scheme, move from its present location at the Afudua House on the Liberation Road, to the doorsteps of residents of Kwesimintsim, New Takoradi and Takoradi Special.

In each of the suburbs, where the promotion was held, the office of the Health Insurance spent three days registering the residents, to access the scheme.

What was extraordinary about the promotion was the fact that when a applicant is registered, his/her photo is taking on the spot, and immediately receives his/her identity card, as well as his/her health facility cards.

Yet they cannot access the scheme, at a hospital, until a period of two months has elapsed. This is contrary to when an applicant goes to the office of the scheme to get registered, where his/her identity card would be held by the office, until a period of two months, before the applicant could come for it, in order to access health facilities of any hospital.

This is the first time the office has held such promotion, and it thus attracted much response from the residents in the above mentioned towns.

In Takoradi for instance, a total of 1,354 applicants were registered, in the three day promotion.

At Kwesimintsim, a total of 1,252 applicants were registered, whilst New-Takoradi recorded a total of 439. In sum, the total number of applicants, who were registered in the three towns, totaled 3,045 in the week's promotion.

Speaking in a an interview with Western File, the Management and Information System Manager of the office, Mr. Theophilus Brako, noted that it was the policy of the office to hold the promotion every quarterly, with the view to registering more applicants, to access health facilities in the metropolis freely.

The number of applicants, according to Mr. Brako, who voluntarily registered during the exercise, was encouraging, though the promotion was costly. This is because they had to hire a vehicle and cause radio announcements.