Private Health Facilities Withdraw NHIMA Services Over K100 Million Debt
By Mukwima Chilala
Private health facilities have unilaterally decided to withdraw services under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIMA) due to government’s failure to address a debt exceeding K100 million owed to them.
As of August this year, the government was reported to owe over K100 million to private health facilities across the country.
The scheme has continued dispensing prescriptions in both public and private facilities, even in cases where the required medicines are available.
In an interview with Millennium Radio, Health-care Federation of Zambia President, Dr. Shailen Desai, confirmed that private health facilities have resolved to suspend NHIMA services owing to the prolonged non-payment.
Dr. Desai adds that facilities still offering the service have scaled down the number of treatments provided, citing government’s lack of commitment to dismantling the debt.
He has warned that the situation is choking the operations of private health providers and could negatively affect the quality of healthcare delivery to citizens.