Upper West is one the Regions with the highest NHIS membership coverage in the Country in terms of percentage.
The Region is equally making waves in relation to health service utilization. Over 95% OPD attendance and admissions in Upper West are NHIS card holders and the situation is an indication of how the people of the Region have embraced the scheme.
Fifty-five percent of the population of the Region is bearing NHIS card which is above the national average of about 38% coverage.
The Upper West Regional Director of NHIS, Abass Suleymana who led his staff on a float through some principal streets in Wa to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Scheme interacted with the media.
Mr. Suleymana indicated that per the statistics, Upper West has performed remarkably over the 15 years of the establishment of the Scheme and pledged that he and his team will continue to work diligently in tandem with the four foundation pillars of the Scheme to further improve the efficiency in service delivery to the people.
The Upper West Regional Director of NHIS mentioned the four foundation pillars as: improving the financial model of the scheme; improving accountability and quality assurance; improving claims management through e-claims and enhancing the existing legal provision.
Mr. Suleymana pointed out that the digitization of the operations of the operations of the scheme is aimed at delivering universal health coverage to the masses.
He described the formal launch of the NHIS Membership Mobile Renewal Service and e-Receipting System by President Akufo-Addo which is accessible on a short code *929# as a high point of the 15th Anniversary of Scheme.
Mr. Suleymana who was besides himself with joy, told the staff that: “Today, as we are gathered here to commemorate this remarkable milestone, of 15 years since the establishment of one of the most important social policy interventions this country has ever had. As Ghanaians, we have to be proud of ourselves, individually and collectively that we have been able to establish a home-grown national health insurance scheme, which has become a model of health financing in Africa and the world as a whole. The thrust of 15th Anniversary is/was The Path to Universal Health Coverage in Ghana: Innovating for Sustainable NHIS.”
Story and pictures by Emmanuel Mensah-Abludo
