The Convention Peoples Party (CPP) is calling for a review of the National Health Insurance Scheme to cover all ailments and scale up the Free Senior High School education policy to include tertiary education.
According to the party, education and health issues remain key to the human resource development of the country and a pre-requisite for national development, hence the demand for universal education and health care for all Ghanaians.
Speaking at the Upper East regional conference of the CPP in Bolgatanga, Acting General Secretary of the Party, James Kwabena Bomfeh, argued that, the current arrangement for treatment of clients under the NHIS does not give them real value for money as the majority of ailments are not covered by the scheme.
He wants a review of the NHIS to cover laboratory services and medications of all ailments and the introduction of a free annual medical checks program as a proactive measure for early identification and treatment of ailments to avert preventable deaths.
“For us (CPP), NHIS is a key guarantor of making sure that, no Ghanaian is left out of the health bracket but the arrangement as we have it now, does not include all laboratory services and all ailments. We want the scheme to ensure that, the NHIS covers all laboratory and ailments but also introduce a free annual medical checkup as a component in the scheme. Many are the people who go to hospitals, get medications, they go to the pharmacy but their drugs are not covered by health insurance so, of what end is the benefit that, they are suppose to get from the health insurance. So, it is important that, we review the NHIS but also include a preventive aspect of our health system”.
Mr. Bomfeh commended government for the introduction of Free Senior high education but insisted it should include tertiary education for all Ghanaians to reap the benefits of Ghana’s natural resources.
He, however, chastised both the NDC and NPP government for converting polytechnics to technical universities, adding that, the move was needless.
“We cannot limit this country’s education to second cycle. Free Senior high education is a bold
ambitious exercise but we need to reconsider the tertiary arm, tertiary not only the universities but the
technical and vocation aspects. And that is why I think it was wrong to convert our Polytechnics into Technical universities because polytechnics are standalone institutions for technical and vocational training who could run Masters and PhD programs if the various faculties’ are enhanced with the right lecturers”.
