The Private Health Facilities Association of Ghana is appealing to the government to increase the amount it pays for drugs and non-drugs provided under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

According to the group, the depreciation of the cedi coupled with recent economic challenges has caused the prices of drugs and non-drugs to skyrocket.

Speaking to Citi News, the Vice President of the Private Health Facilities Association of Ghana, Samuel Boakye Donkor, said providers under the NHIS are making losses, as the current price the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) pays for drugs and non-drugs under the Scheme, does not tally with the astronomical increase in prices.

Mr. Donkor wants the amount paid by government to correspond with the hike in prices of general goods and services.

“If government is supplying me with the drugs and non-drugs at the lowest price, less than what he pays, fine, nobody will have a problem. But we are left to buy from the pharmaceutical companies, who then import some and even import raw materials to manufacture the drugs here in Ghana

“And the dollar rate is making things go up and government is expecting us the providers to do magic, how? You buy GH¢10 drug, and you want us to sell it GH¢1 how? These things should have been done long ago, not now. We are not supposed to even tell the government. It should adjust it to market prices so that at least we break even and don’t lose,” Vice President of the Private Health Facilities Association of Ghana appealed.