A former Director General of the Ghana Health Service Professor Agyemang Badu Akosa says the National Health Insurance Scheme was heading for a collapse even before it was launched.

According to him, the government under ex-president John Kufuor did not do enough due diligence in restricting the policy to only public health institutions when it introduced the policy in 2003.

Speaking at the 15th Annual General Meeting of the Medical Superintendent Group in Koforidua, Thursday, Prof Akosa said the challenges the scheme is facing in recent times is because of policy defect in the beginning of implementation.

“For me I have always held the belief that NHIS is about private health care. If we restrict it to public health care delivery we will get much better results. If you don’t want to go to a public hospital and you want to go to a private hospital be ready to pay,” he said.

“That for me is the greatest mistake that the NHIA did when it started the policy,” he added.

The National Health Insurance Scheme policy was introduced in 2003 by ex-president John Kufuor to replace the dreaded cash and carry policy which had been in place for decades.

The policy was to ensure universal health insurance coverage to all Ghanaians through the payment of premiums every year.

Established under the National Health Insurance Act 2003, Act 650, the policy has been implemented for over a decade amidst challenges of indebtedness to service providers.

Prior to taking over government in 2017, the NPP administration inherited a debt of ¢1.2 billion owed service providers by the National Health Insurance Authority.

The government has since promised to salvage the policy from total collapse.

At the first session of the 50th congregation and fifth swearing and induction ceremony of 54 doctors at the School of Medical Sciences at the University of Cape Coast President Nana Akufo-Addo  said half of the debt owed the NHIA had been paid.

"Government is clearly aware of the challenges confronting the health sector," he said, adding there will be monthly releases from the Finance Ministry to keep the policy vibrant.

But Prof Badu Akosa believes the policy must only be limited to public health institutions.

He would want the policy makers to emulate the health insurance policy structure in the UK where services are only limited to public health care institutions.

The current Director General of the Ghana Health Service Dr. Nsiah Asare said government is on course to addressing the challenges facing the policy.

According to him, since January this year, government has disbursed about ¢800,000 000 covering ten months  arrears out of the 12 months owed the service providers in 2016.

He said, the Ghana health services is going to establish a National Health Insurance Scheme desk at the GHS to check the lapses in claims delivery and payment.