The Minority in Parliament is accusing the government of failing to back its healthcare promises with the necessary resources, warning that continued underinvestment could deepen Ghana’s health crisis.

A member of Parliament’s Health Committee, Dr. Kingsley Agyemang, says the government’s own 2026 Mid-Year Budget Review exposes a worrying gap between policy commitments and actual spending in the health sector.

Addressing journalists at a press conference on Wednesday, July 29, the Abuakwa South MP argued that healthcare financing must be treated as a strategic investment in Ghana’s future and not a cost to be minimised.

He warned that when a country fails to prioritise the health of its citizens, it weakens the very foundation of economic growth and national development.

"The implication of not spending in the health sector is that we cannot have quality healthcare. When you don't have healthcare, you don't have a nation because people drive value. You cannot underestimate the quality of your people. The best standard for every country is to maintain a healthy population," he stated.

Dr. Agyemang also linked inadequate funding to the decline in public health awareness campaigns, particularly those targeting HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases.

He said the reduction in government-sponsored education programmes on television, radio, and other platforms has limited access to critical prevention information and contributed to rising health risks.

"You remember HIV cases have increased. It is all because access to condoms and the promotion of HIV awareness have become a problem. After all, the government is not spending. When was the last time you saw a government-sponsored health promotion advertisement on television?" he questioned.

The lawmaker further raised concerns about the growing impact of non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and hypertension, arguing that weak investment in prevention and early detection is costing lives.

He also questioned the government's ability to sustain key health sector commitments, including the payment of nursing training allowances.

According to him, only about 30 percent of the allocation for the allowance had been utilised, raising fears among trainee nurses about possible delays in receiving their payments.

"The only budget line that appears to be up to date is compensation because workers have to be paid. But when it comes to the Nursing Training Allowance, only about 30 per cent has been utilised. If you are a nursing trainee watching me, it is straightforward that your allowances may not be paid because it will be difficult to complete the payments before the end of the year," he asserted.

Dr. Agyemang further criticised the pace of funding releases to the National Health Insurance Scheme, arguing that the government's decision to uncap the National Health Insurance Fund will have little impact if approved resources do not reach healthcare providers.

"There was no point in uncapping the National Health Insurance Fund if the money is not released. A budget allocation on paper is meaningless unless the finance minister actually releases the funds for healthcare delivery," he stressed.

The Abuakwa South MP is demanding urgent action from government, insisting that healthcare funding must move from budget statements to actual releases that improve services for ordinary Ghanaians.