Health providers under the National Health Insurance Scheme in the Ashanti region are reeling under privation caused by months of unpaid claims. The providers told Ultimate Radio, they are compelled against their wish to lay off workers due to the delays in payments due them.

President of the Ashanti Regional National Health Insurance Service Providers Association, Sylvester Kankam Boateng, told Ultimate Radio some members of the association are owed more than six months of arrears. He lamented, “for two years counting, many of our providers have been on overdraft and as we speak today; last month is long gone and still some have not been able to pay just salaries, not to talk of the electricity bills and other replaceable items we use in the hospitals.”

He was worried their bankers have now refused to advance them further overdraft facilities due to their inability to pay off outstanding debts.

He says the problem is crippling the operations of the various hospitals and health centers offering the National Health Insurance Scheme.

Sylvester Kankam Boateng further pointed out that service providers in the Ashanti Region were being unfairly treated as capitation payments for certain diseases per patient falls short of payments advanced for the same disease in regions without capitation.

According to him, whereas treatment for malaria attract a service charge of Ghc11.71 in other regions, providers in Ashanti Region are paid just Ghc2.75 for treating malaria.

He was of the view that their health facilities were better off without the National Health Insurance Scheme.

Concerns of the health providers are shared by the Christian Health Association of Ghana (CHAG) whose health providers have given government up to July 2 to pay their outstanding arrears or see them withdraw their services to NHIS card bearing patients.