GOVERNMENT�S EFFORT at ensuring every Ghanaian enjoys free medical care under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) is at the verge of collapsing because of the ill treatment some applicants go through before accessing their cards.
New applicants seeking to be enrolled with the NHIS in the Greater Accra region are going through series of countless frustrations and seething with anger after one year of registration.
Some applicants who registered through the special household registration scheme from January last year are still battling with management to process their cards after paying monies ranging from GH� 15.00 to GH�24.00.
According to some of the angry applicants who registered with agents trained by the Osu Klottey branch of the scheme, anytime they visit the office to demand for their cards, management keeps asking them to produce official receipt given them by the agents.
They said the problem started after the announcement that the scheme is undergoing biometric registration. Before then, the scheme had engaged the services of agents who went round house to house to register applicants and benefit 10% of the proceeds.
�Some of us had then registered for over one year and our cards were not forthcoming so we demanded for them where we were told to visit the office.
��.You see, one problem is that after one year, most of us have misplaced our receipts. What we are saying is that, the agents are prepared to go through the official copies kept at the accounts office and that of the public relation department, but management say no way,� they angrily said.
One of the agents who pleaded anonymity said �it is simple exercise that needs coordination from the agents and the managers because most of the people have misplaced their receipts. The only way to solve the problem is to check from the files at the accounts department and that of the public relations office.�
She said �some of the applicants are giving us a hell of time because they think we have chopped their monies, but we have accounted for every single cedis and pesewa collected.�
The middle aged agent said management has refused to honor the GH�300.00 promise as pay before engaging them to undergo three months training.
A former worker at parliament who only gave his name as Ameyibor was among the frustrated applicants who visited the office last week to threaten to report the happenings to the media for publication.
According to him, he received a phone call last week Friday to report to the office; �when I got there I was warmly welcomed and everything was processed, but the question I am asking is what is the fate of the others?�
A visit by the Daily Heritage to the Osu Klottey office to speak with the scheme manager, Bortey Borketey over public outcry proved futile after waiting at the reception for a considerable length of time.
The paper observed that most of the angry applicants were seen packed around the premises of the facility castigating management over the unfair treatment.
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