Ghana: Healthcare for a Country in Transition
This blog was first published in Duke Global Health Institute News. The author Mary-Russell Roberson. Among sub-Saharan African countries, Ghana stands out for its high rate of health insurance coverage: About 40 percent of the population has policies available through the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). But the NHIS is costing the government more than expected. A proposed cost-saving policy, called capitation, would pay providers per patient rather than for each service provided. The policy looked good on paper, but failed in a pilot program. Gilbert Abiiro wanted to know why. He’s a lecturer/researcher at the University for Development Studies in Ghana, who recently spent eight weeks at Duke as a fellow of the Center for Policy Impact in Global Health. In Ghana, Abiiro interviewed providers, policymakers, politicians, and people who…