Suspend NHIS capitation - Ashanti Health providers demand Gov't

Health service providers in the Ashanti region are demanding an immediate suspension of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) capitation until a nationwide roll-out is started.

They are demanding answers from government on whether the piloting of the NHIS capitation is still in force or full implementation has begun.

"The government should impress on NHIA to [suspend] capitation in Ashanti until they are ready to implement it nationwide, Dr. Yeboah Awudzi, Metro Health Diretor and spokesperson for the group noted.

The service providers made the demand at a news conference earlier today in the Ashanti Regional capital, Kumasi, where LUV FM's Erastus Asare Donkor reported that the group is disillusioned as they are not getting the right payment for health services rendered to patients, under the NHIS capitation.

The group, which comprises Christian health association of Ghana, privates health providers and government health institutions noted that  the Capitation piloting, which was meant  for a year, is still on-going even though the exercise came to an end in 2012.

To the health providers, the rates given them  by the government is no where comparable to rates charged for health services to patients under the Ghana Diagnostic Related Grouping (GDRG) as they had lost huge amounts of money during the pilot phase and continued to lose same in the second year due to the disparities.

The group said health facilities operating under GDRG receive higher rates even though all health facilities procure logistics from the same market and at the same cost.

Additionally, the group pointed out that since Government did not give subventions to health facilities for the past two years, patients in Ashanti Regionare likely to receive services of low quality due to inadequate funding.

This, the group noted is as a result of dependence of health facilities in the Region on only internally generated funds (IGF).