NHIS Boss Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye
THE NATIONAL Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has upwardly adjusted tariffs for medicines and services covered by the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).
A statement issued by the authority indicated that framework medicines have been increased by 50 per cent plus an additional 30 per cent marginal increase.
Also, non-framework medicines have been reviewed upwards by 20 per cent while service tariffs across board have been increased by 10 per cent.
The statement further explained that Artemether Injection 80mg/ml and Levofloxacin Infusion 500mg/ml have been added to the NHIS Medicines List and would immediately be reimbursed by the scheme.
The new tariffs increment which took effect from February 1, 2023, was agreed on in consultation with the Ministry of Health, the NHIA Governing Board, Executive Management, and other critical stakeholders in the health sector.
This development justifies the NHIA’s crusade against illegal fees (Co-payments) charged by some credentialed healthcare service providers for services covered by the NHIS.
“The NHIA implored all credentialed service providers and the general public to take note of these adjustments activated to correspond to the observed increase in prices of most Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API’s),” the authority stated.
The last increment of tariffs for medicines and services was done in July 2022, following series of stakeholder engagements.
The NHIA, in August 2022, established a nine-member Copayments Committee to investigate persistent illegal fees charged by some credentialed healthcare service providers at various health facilities.
As the NHIS major impediment, Copayment is the situation where holders of NHIS valid cards are compelled to pay for services and medicines covered by the Scheme at the point of need.
The NHIA Chief Executive, Hon. Dr. Bernard Okoe-Boye, on several occasions served notice that healthcare providers caught in the co-payments deal would have their licences revoked.
He said the authority was committed to abolish the practice and urged all credentialed healthcare providers to be patriotic.
BY Jamila Akweley Okertchiri