The Private Health Facilities Association of Ghana and the general public have described as worrying, the strange donation of some GHC 250,000 by the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to the National COVID-19 Relief Fund.
NHIA which is part of Ghana’s public health infrastructure has consistently refused to pay private health service providers and pharmaceutical companies their due claims, but have been riddled with allegations of mismanagement and misuse of public funds.
The President of the Private Health Facilities Association of Ghana, Samuel Boakye Donkor said currently the National Health Insurance Authority owes members of the association between 6 to 14 months arrears in claims, calling out the NHIS to prioritize paying them their monies rather than making donations.
“It is really something bad and painful. You owe us from last year July to date. Others have not been paid for 14 months. We just heard that the government has given you money to pay us and you have given that money back to the government saying it is your cooperate social responsibility. Paying us and enabling us to serve Ghanaians is also social responsibility. I recently sent a claim from February 2019, and when you had some money, you’ve gone to give to the COVID-19 Fund, what kind of life is this?” he said.
It is curious why a major stakeholder in the public health space has decided to donate funds to a public health situation like a private company. Donations to the Covid-19 funds are mostly being done by private companies and institutions.
In a statement justifying its controversial donation, the NHIA saying the law that established the NHIA compels it to facilitate access to services and to invest in any other facilitating programme.
“The NHIS was set up as a solidarity system to make public healthcare affordable…the NHIA’s donation of GHC 250,000 to the Covid-19 Relief Fund, though significant, represents less than 5% of the entire Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) budget for 2020. Indeed it is equivalent to 0.06% of funds paid in claims this year, which amounts to approximately GHC 400 million to healthcare providers as claims reimbursement,” the statement from NHIS read.
“..the donation is the NHIS way of demonstrating good corporate citizenship by supporting government initiatives that will provide health education, prevention and enhancement of health infrastructure to fight this unseen enemy.”
However, critics have questioned why the NHIS would want to use publicity stunt like a private company to announce its contribution towards the fight against Covid-19 in the health sector where it is one of the fundamental players.