Management of the Kwahu North District Mutual Health Insurance Scheme registered 72,401 clients by the end of August this year as against 52,801 clients last year. This represents an increase of 45.1 per cent. Mr Daniel Agyepong, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the scheme, announced this at the Third Annual General Meeting of the scheme at Donkorkrom. He said the scheme recorded 76,750 patients in the out patient department (OPD), and paid 820,140 Ghana cedis as claims to 13 service providers in the district. Mr Agyepong said although the scheme was established about five years ago, patronage had not been encouraging due to lack of adequate water transport logistics to reach communities on the dwarf islands. He commended Nana Okai Duam II, Chief of Donkorkrom, for releasing land to construct permanent offices for the scheme and expressed appreciation to the assembly for its support as well as the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) for providing the scheme with a Toyota pickup, motor bikes, bicycles, four computers and accessories. Mr Kwadwo Affram-Asiedu, Eastern Regional Minister, in an address read on his behalf, commended the board and management for their ingenuity to register more clients considering the terrain of which 147 out of the 689 communities in the district were on islands. However, he urged them to intensify sensitization programmes to register more clients to enable them access quality and affordable health care delivery. Mr Affram-Asiedu advised stakeholders in the operations of the scheme to endeavour to avoid the current trend where between 70 to 90 per cent of their revenue were spent in paying health care bills. He advised them to emphasize on preventive health care through public education on environmental cleanliness, personal hygiene and good eating habits to reduce diseases among the people. Mr Affram-Asiedu urged management of the scheme to collaborate with Ghana Health Service Directorate to educate the public on sanitation. Mr Collins Akuamoah Danso, Eastern Regional Manager of National Health Insurance Authority, urged the management team to evolve more innovative marketing strategy to increase coverage. Source: GNA