NHIA Takes NHIS Services Closer to Ajumako Communities

The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has strengthened its operations in the Ajumako Enyan Essiam District with a new office and a Toyota Hilux pickup to improve enrolment, monitoring and access to National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) services.

The development is expected to help the Authority overcome mobility and space constraints that previously affected its operations in the district, particularly during mass enrolment exercises.

For several years, NHIA staff in the district worked from a small rented facility that had limited space, was not disability-friendly, and struggled to accommodate the growing number of clients.

The Chief Executive of the NHIA, Dr Victor Asare Bampoe, commissioned the new district office at Ajumako on Wednesday and handed over the vehicle to support outreach and other official duties.

At the commissioning ceremony, he said the investment formed part of efforts to improve staff welfare and internal controls, restore public confidence in the NHIS and align the Authority’s operations with the Government’s flagship health policies.

He said the new facility represented more than improved infrastructure, describing it as a sign of the NHIS’s commitment to bringing services closer to communities and advancing Universal Health Coverage (UHC).

“This building is more than concrete and roofing sheets. It is a statement that the NHIS is permanent, it is closer to the people, and poised to achieve UHC. When members walk into a dignified office like this, trust is restored,” he noted.

Dr Bampoe commended the government for supporting and enabling the NHIA to make prompt claims reimbursements to healthcare service providers.

The NHIA CEO said the new vehicle was expected to play a direct role in expanding NHIS membership across the district.

Presenting the keys to the Central Regional Director and the Ajumako District Manager, he explained that the Authority had procured operational vehicles for selected districts across the country to address mobility challenges affecting enrolment, monitoring and client follow-up.

He advised the Ajumako office to use the vehicle to take NHIS services into communities, markets and schools, particularly in areas that are difficult to reach.

“For a district as large and dispersed as Ajumako Enyan Essiam — from Enyan Denkyira to Breman Essiam and Ajumako Bisease — you cannot do effective mobilisation on foot or on motorbike. This vehicle must translate into numbers. It must go into the communities, into the markets, into the schools to register people. To whom much is given, much is expected.”

He cautioned that the vehicle was strictly for official duties and urged the officers responsible for it to ensure proper maintenance.

He disclosed that the NHIA had increased service tariffs by 50 per cent in response to concerns raised by healthcare providers over claims.

The CEO, however, warned providers against imposing illegal charges on NHIS members or asking them to pay for services covered by the Scheme.

“We have adjusted our tariffs to a 50 per cent increment as a listening institution, and we do not want you to turn away NHIS members or cause them to pay for services that are covered under the NHIS,” he said.

The Acting Central Regional Director of the NHIA, Kojo Sekyere Koi Thompson, said the new office and vehicle had come at an important time as the region intensified efforts to increase active NHIS membership.

He said active membership in the Central Region currently stood at about 66 per cent, with the region targeting 80 per cent by December.

According to him, the vehicle would improve the Authority’s ability to supervise health facilities, monitor service delivery, address illegal charges and reach communities that are difficult to access.

“The vehicle will significantly boost our ability to supervise facilities, conduct monitoring to check illegal charges, and reach hard-to-reach areas. We will put it to good use,” he assured.

The Ajumako Enyan Essiam District Chief Executive, Andrew Kojo Anderson, commended the NHIA for the investment and pledged the Assembly’s support towards maintaining the new facilities.

Grace Acheampong, ISD