The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has applauded the F. Alpha and Omega Specialist Hospital in Madina for their voluntary efforts to register more people onto the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) at no cost.
The hospital’s initiative also includes renewing expired memberships for existing members, all conducted within the hospital’s premises.
This came to light during a working visit by the NHIA Deputy Chief Executive for Operations, Louisa Atta-Agyemang (Mrs.), to the hospital on Tuesday, June 25, 2024.
According to the hospital’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Francis Fosu, the facility began operations three months ago and quickly noticed that a significant portion of the local population was not insured by the NHIS.
In response, the hospital launched “Operation 20,000,” aiming to register 20,000 new members for free.
Mr. Fosu explained that this rapid intervention is part of the hospital’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to encourage more people to subscribe to the NHIS.
“When we started operations three months ago, many people in the community lacked NHIS cards and some had not renewed their membership due to a low level of trust in the Scheme. To address this, the hospital set an ambitious goal to register 20,000 new members for free, with 7,000 members already registered,” he stated.
Mr. Fosu reassured NHIS members of comprehensive healthcare services without any illegal charges for services covered by the Scheme, reaffirming the hospital’s commitment to patient care and support.
He also raised concerns about the disparity between market prices of medicines and the prices set by the NHIA, which he noted is affecting the hospital’s operations.
During her visit, Mrs. Atta-Agyemang interacted with NHIS members admitted in various wards. Patients expressed their gratitude, noting that the NHIS covered all their medical bills without any extra charges.
She praised the hospital’s management for their exemplary services and emphasized the role of credentialed healthcare providers in enhancing the importance of the NHIS.
Mrs. Atta-Agyemang was particularly impressed with the hospital’s efforts to offer free registration and renew expired memberships, urging other healthcare providers to adopt similar practices to improve healthcare accessibility and renew public trust in the NHIS.
She also advised credentialed healthcare providers to cease charging illegal fees for services covered by the Scheme.
Inaugurated in April 2024, the F. Alpha and Omega Specialist Hospital is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, including a dental clinic with an operation room, an eye clinic, a dialysis center with 10 machines set to start operations in September, a fully stocked pharmacy, a labour room, and separate wards for male, female, and pediatric patients.
Source: Naomi Quaicoe