Six health providers of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) have been arraigned before an Accra Circuit Court for allegedly writing drugs on their own prepared prescription form and attached invoices to them to the Authority for payments. The accused who are facing three counts of fraud including uttering forged documents and stealing have been remanded in police custody to reappear on Monday June 7, this year. The accused are Cynthia Bayejena, a Nurse at Tikobo No.2 Health Centre, Grace Danso, a Nurse at Ahobre No.2 Health Centre, John Kofi Nyamekah Dispensing Assistant, David Nelson, Chemical Seller, Emmanuel Zakaria, Driver at the Half Assini Government Hospital and John Aryeh Chemical Seller all in the Western Region. Giving the facts of the case to the Court, the Prosecutor, ASP E.S.S Koranteng said, between January to December 2009 the management of NHIA acting upon information that there was a fraudulent deal being perpetrated at the Jomoro District made a report at the Headquarters of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and the suspects were arrested from their various stations and shops. He continued that investigations conducted revealed that the duties of the two nurses were to prescribe drugs to patients which were not readily available at their respective health centres however after prescribing drugs to patients they would again issue different prescription forms for issue of the same drugs or prescribe a high value drug using the same patients name and hand them over to Mr. Nelson to prepare invoice for non-supplied drugs. He noted that Mr. Nyamekah, after the doctor in charge of the government had prescribed drugs for patients, would serve the patient but would then prepare his own prescription form by writing different drugs which are of high value and has nothing to do with the drugs that had been prescribed by the doctor, for payment. “the 5th accused person who is a driver at the Hospital’s dispensary and who has access to prescription forms took undue advantage and wrote his own prescription on the forms and submitted them to Mr. Nelson for money. Further investigation revealed that between GH¢9, 000 and GH¢10, 000 are milked from the scheme monthly through these fraudulent transactions,” ASP Koranteng reiterated. He said Mr. Ayeh prepared his own form and wrote drugs on them and prepared invoice attached to them for payment adding that based on that a report was made at the CID Headquarters and the accused was arrested at Mpohor. He intimated that the Pharmacist at Mpohor Wassa Hospital was contacted to know if his outfit has prescribed drugs on that particular prescription forms he denied having used such forms. Investigations revealed that the accused used that fraudulent act and collected GH¢14,000 from the scheme. The prosecutor pleaded with the court to remand the accused persons in police custody to enable the police to continue with their investigations.