5 / 2017-07-16 05:43:30

Analysing the enrolment challenges of Ghana’s National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS); the role of Social Capital

Health insurance,,enrolment, social capital, Ghana

This paper highlights the importance of state-society synergy, often referred to as linking social capital between formal institutions under the NHIS and the citizenry for enrolment. As a scheme that thrives on the goodwill of the population, the paper contends that the enrolment decision will be better understood by applying social capital theory. Relying on qualitative data collected from three districts in the Ashanti region of Ghana, the study finds that negative experiences with service providers as a major hindrance to enrolment. A number of people including even the poor enrol only for the fact that the scheme serves as a buffer for some kind of first aid and not for detailed quality care. Also, enrolment is being hampered by a confidence deficit which is fuelled by publicized corruption scandals by NHIS related institutions and officials and their failure to account for NHIS resources. The findings highlight the need to redirect efforts to increase enrolment on building social capital; a very critical enabler, but which has been largely ignored in the analysis over the years. The generated insights can assist in improving policy design and communication within the overall objective of garnering more public support for effective policy implementation.