A Former Minister of Health under the President Kufuor administration, Dr. Richard Anane, has maintained that the National Health Insurance Levy must be increased by one and half percent.
According to Dr. Anane, he had constantly proposed to the ousted NDC government to increase the levy by one and half percent with the suggestion that the increase is taken from the National Infrastructure Fund.
“What I kept on telling them was that you want to do infrastructure but infrastructure you don’t need to put the money aside and say I am now going to do infrastructure because not until someone has done something and presented a certificate, there is no need to pay him,” he explained in an interview with Winston Amoah on 3FM 92.7’s morning show Sunrise.
The Health Minister under whose tenure the NHIS started, Dr. Anane insisted that the toils of the team who kick-started the policy must not go waste.
“If you had known how health insurance started in Ghana, if you had known the kind of people who had to do it, [the experts] did not even have to come from the Ministry.
“When I went to the Ministry, the technocrats at the Ministry at that time told me it was not possible,” he revealed.
Dr. Anane said the NDC government decided not to increase the levy because they feared a backlash from the people of Ghana.
“One per cent VAT at that time was about GH¢400 million and that was exactly what the NHIS was talking about, there was a gap.
“I still maintain it has to be increased. Let the people of Ghana know this is going to be used for their health. I don’t think if it is going to be used for health, they will say no.”
By Gideon Anaba|3FM 92.7|3news.com|Ghana