Wa, July 22, GNA - Mr. Ambrose Dery, Upper West Regional Minister on Friday charged scheme managers and other officials of the District Health Insurance Schemes in the Region to rise up to the challenge of ensuring that more people in their areas were captured in the Scheme. He observed that there was low registration and premium payment in the Region because Scheme managers and officials sat back in their offices and expected the people to come to them.

According to him, health facilities in the Region were equally not well prepared to play their role in the implementation of the Scheme. Mr Dery made these observations, when he inaugurated a 14-member Regional Technical Support Committee of the Scheme at Wa.

The committee will co-ordinate, monitor and facilitate the development of the Schemes in all the Districts in the Region, assist in the mobilisation efforts of Scheme Managers and ensure the provision of quality service by scheme managers and prompt payment of claims. Mr Dery said the training of various categories of health staff who would be involved in providing services under the scheme was crucial in the successful implementation of the Scheme.

Dr Erasmus Agongo, the Regional Director of Health Services said the low registration rate in the Region was a major challenge to the successful implementation of the Scheme.

He said less than 1,000 people had so far registered in some districts in the Region and attributed it to the high level of poverty in that part of the country.

Miss Elizabeth Karbo, on behalf of the committee, gage the assurance that they would play their role with commitment knowing very well that the success of the scheme in the Region meant better health care for their people.