The Government of Ghana, headed by President John Dramani Mahama, says that it is setting up a new administrative infrastructure called the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, otherwise known as ‘Mahama Cares’.
The Fund is to target individuals with non-communicable diseases that are hard to finance, such as kidney ailments and cancers.
Whilst the thought of providing state-assistance directly to those who are afflicted is laudable, the fact is that that has always been the purpose of the National Health Insurance Scheme.
Assuming, but not admitting that the scheme was not living up the expectation, that is, not taking care of those afflicted with non-communicable diseases, what should have been done, is rewrite the NHIS law and policy.
It certainly is not to set up a whole new health infrastructure to compete with the NHIS Scheme. It certainly does not mean diving into the NHIS Funds to plunder 20% of those funds for diversion to the new scheme.
It is in this wise that we wish that the Majority had had the smarts to listen to suggestions from the New Patriotic Party Minority Caucus in Parliament to deploy the Covid-19 levy as a viable financing option to support the Trust Fund, instead of the government allocating 20 per cent of the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) to it.
It is true that the government’s decision to take 20 per cent from the NHIF would weaken the National Health Insurance Scheme since the Trust Fund would be competing with the scheme for financial resources.
However, it is clear, as it has always been the case in Ghana, that good advice would not fall into receptive ears, particularly on a politicized matter.
(Editorial of the Daily Searchlight of 25th July, 2025).
