Members of Parliament (MP) have charged Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta to, as a matter of urgency, release outstanding National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) payments of over GHC400 million owed service providers across the country.

According to them, this will help prevent a possible collapse of the scheme.

Presenting the report of the Committee of the Whole on the Proposed Formula for the Disbursement of the National Health Insurance Fund for the year 2017, First Deputy Speaker Joseph Osei-Owusu said the delay in the release of the funds was gradually crippling the activities of the health insurance body.

Contributing to the debate, MPs were unanimous in their call for an immediate payment of arrears to service providers to save it from collapse.

The debate, however, turned political when both leaders in wrapping up their contributions on the issue, accused one another of throwing dust into the eyes of the populace in respect to the true state of the scheme.

Speaking with Class News, Health Minister Kwaku Agyemang-Manu expressed optimism that the NHIS would not collapse under President Akufo-Addo.

According to Mr Agyeman-Manu, Mr Ofori-Atta has begun offsetting debts left by the previous National Democratic Congress (NDC) administration in a bid to sustain the policy.