Effiduase (Ash), Aug 05, GNA - The National Health Insurance Council (NHIC) has provided 1.1 billion cedis to the Sekyere East District Mutual Health Insurance Scheme (DMHIS) in support of its activities, Miss Esther Odoom, Manager of the scheme, has said. Speaking to the people after a clean-up exercise at Effiduase on Friday to mark the first anniversary of the scheme in the district, she said the scheme had collected 340 million cedis from members and had paid 900 million cedis to health facility providers of the scheme. She said the scheme had 36,000 members, including indigents representing 43 per cent of the total population of the district, adding that, about 15,000 people had benefited from the scheme.

Miss Odoom said over 24,000 people had been issued with identity cards and called on people, who had not as yet registered with the scheme to do so to benefit from the scheme.

Mr Philip Basoah, the District Chief Executive said, he was impressed with the month-long promotional activities the scheme had undertaken as a prelude to its one-year anniversary. He said activities, which included deepening sensitisation of the communities, mass registration and intensification of collection of premiums had raised the awareness level of the people about the scheme. The DCE said there was the need for all and sundry to find alternative ways of financing the scheme, if the dream of freeing the people, especially the poor from the financial burden imposed by hospitalisation and other related health cost.

To this end, he said the scheme would liaise with the management to embark on fund raising drive to help improve its financial base to enable it provide health care to its members.

Mr Basoah told the people that the scheme was on course, considering the hurdles jumped over, testimonies of successes to the credit and strategies being put in place to sustain it.

Under the youth employment programme in the district, the DCE said the assembly was recruiting 30 more environmental health personnel to beef up the existing one in the department.

"Sixty auxiliary nurses have been recruited, who would be posted to fill the vacancies in the various health centres in the peripheries after training.

"The arrangement will ease the pressure on the district hospital, whilst at the same time lessen the burden of patients from travelling long distances to seek medical attention at the district hospital at Effiduase"

Nana Adu Ameyaw, Effiduasehene, said the cleanup had brought unity among the people and hoped it would continue to bring progress and development to the town.