The Coalition of NGOs in Health has called on political parties to make issues of universal access to free and quality health care the central focus of their campaign.

Mr Moses Azabu, Chairman of the Coalition, who made the call at a forum in Tamale, said free quality health care must be a right and how to achieve it should engage the attention of political leaders.

Mr Azabu said this became necessary because of the fact that adequate financing of the National Health Insurance Scheme with funds from only the formal sector could not be sustained.

He, therefore, called on political parties and for that matter government to commit to financing a national health scheme through increased tax revenue to provide predictable, sustainable and fair funding for universal health care.

He suggested the need to remove barriers to health care by scrapping the annual insurance premium.

Mr Azabu said there is the need to significantly improve the efficiency of the health system to allow more funding for direct health care.

Mr Fredrick Tahiru, Member of the Northern Regional Communications Team of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), blamed poor management for what he described as inefficiency in the health care delivery in the country.

Mr Tahiru gave the assurance that the NPP would fix the system as well as put up additional health infrastructure to improve health care delivery.

Mr Iddisah Mumuni, Regional Secretary of the Convention Peoples Party said the party would work to eliminate indiscipline out of the system to improve service delivery.

Zangbalun Bomahe Naa (Chief) Alhassan Issahaku Amadu, Regional Director of the National Population Council, who chaired the forum, said universal access to health care demands that everyone should have access to free quality service irrespective of location, age, sex and wealth.