The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the Private Health Facilities Association of Ghana, Mr Francis Fosu, has said that the rise in the conversion of private health facilities into mortuaries is due to the shortage of funds from the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) to operate.
Mr Fosu said private health facilities had not been paid for claims dated February 2022.
He added that claims for March 2022 had been released, but only a few providers have received payments.
He revealed that many of his colleagues are closing their health facilities to operate mortuaries because of the NHIS’s indebtedness.
Mr Fosu observed that some of his colleagues see the mortuary business as more lucrative than offering Out-Patient Department (OPD) services under the NHIA.
According to him, the lack of funds that hit NHIA has contributed to more people dying, leading to the new trend of burials being organised on Mondays in the country.
Mr Ofosu made this revelation while reacting to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Ranking Member on the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh’s assertion that the NHIA is being starved of funds.
“All is not well with the NHIA as the government is paying the 2.5 tax meant for the NHIA into the consolidated fund accounts.
“We need not be here if the payments are directly paid into NHIS,” he argued.
He noted that the NHIA could not support common treatments such as eye and nose.
He said this is happening at some of the teaching hospitals across the country.
