Former Presidential Advisor on Health, Dr. Anthony Nsiah-Asare, has confirmed that Ghana’s free dialysis programme is actively running at selected health facilities.
His comments follow concerns raised by Health Minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, who criticized the previous administration for allocating only GH¢4 million to the programme, arguing that the amount was grossly inadequate to meet the needs of dialysis patients nationwide.
Mintah Akandoh, a former Ranking Member on the Health Committee of Parliament, expressed worry over the lack of a sustainable funding mechanism for dialysis treatment in the country. He emphasized that GH¢4 million was insufficient given the high cost of dialysis sessions, medical consumables, and comprehensive patient care.
However, speaking in an interview on Citi FM, Dr. Nsiah-Asare refuted claims that financial constraints were affecting the programme’s effectiveness.
“We all saw in the dailies that 20 facilities were published by the National Health Insurance Authority for this free dialysis in December 2024 after assessments were done.
“These services, as I know, are currently ongoing smoothly in the various selected facilities and have been confirmed several times by the president of the Dialysis Association, Major Ahenkra. You can call him to confirm, you can also call some dialysis patients to verify if they are not receiving free dialysis.
“You can also reach out to some of the institutions to confirm if they are not being reimbursed through the National Health Insurance.
“This is part of the policy package for this year. As you are aware, the health insurance scheme acquired 45 dialysis machines through a three-partner collaboration, which were deployed to support the free dialysis programme.
“So, as far as I am concerned, free dialysis is ongoing. The GH¢57 million budgetary allocation captured in the appropriation bill for the first quarter has covered dialysis treatment,” he stated.