Private Health Practitioners to stop seeing National Health Insurance Scheme subscribers
The Society of Private Medical and Dental Practitioners (SPMDP) says it would stop attending to card holders of the National Health Insurance Authority’ (NHIA), if all outstanding remunerations are not paid by April 30.
The ultimatum, according to the Practitioners takes effect from May 31, 2015.
The Society said most of its members had not been paid “by the NHIA from August 2014 up to date”, adding that, the private health sector was collapsing.
At a press conference organised in Accra by the Society, Dr Kwesi Odoi-Agyarko, National President of SPMDP said “the private sector is broke; therefore, the private health sector cannot continue to provide for unpaid services”.
Dr Odoi-Agyarko said the Society at a Council meeting held recently in Accra observed in a communiqué that since about 55 per cent of Ghanaians patronised the private medical health sector the health system would be severely compromised “were it not for the massive contribution of the private health sector”.
In the Communiqué, the practitioners said they were being taken to court for non-payment of SSNIT contributions of their workers, non-payment of taxes due to Ghana Revenue Authority, non-payment of property and business operating fees from Municipal and District Assemblies as well as the nonpayment of utility bills.
Dr Odoi-Agyarko said the Society was also recommending to Government and the NHIA to come together with other stakeholders to discuss a more acceptable co-payment in health financing which had become the order of the day in both public and private health facilities in the country.
“We prescribe to the NHIA and the government, co-payment. Yes we know it is a social health insurance. Clients are prepared to contribute a little for competent and appropriate health service”.
The Society also proposed a variety of co-payment, including, a fixed sum per service, a percentage of the overall cost of the service, a combination of fixed sums and percentages and deductibles which could all be explored for the most suitable one to be adopted for the country.
The Society also urged the NHIA to repackage the Capitation Grant with realistic stakeholder participation, while considering computing the actual cost of treatment in Ghana to properly inform a more realistic capitation.
Source: GNA