The Executive Director for Revenue Mobilisation Africa, Godfred Ocansey, has urged the appropriate institutions to name and shame officials of various public hospitals charging pregnant women unapproved fees.
According to Mr Ocansey, the situation is appalling and must be condemned since it has over the years led to avoidable deaths.
His comments come on the back of the exposé by Corruption Watch investigator, Francisca Enchill, dubbed: Pay or Die! … the agony of pregnant women in hospitals.
Despite provisions in the National Health Insurance Scheme Act that pregnant women should receive free maternal care, some staff of the 37 Military Hospital, Mamprobi Hospital, Maamobi General Hospital, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Keneshie Polyclinic and Amasaman Hospital were captured in the 37-minute video charging them fees.
Some pregnant women were left unattended to when they were unable to pay.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, Friday, Mr Ocansey bemoaned the situation only exposes the wicked and evil nature of some health professionals in the country.
He explained authorities must immediately act to serve as deterrence.
“I was very angry when I watched the video and was appalled because if you know the pain that comes with losing someone during childbirth, you will understand.
“This scheme itself is not free so why should people suffer to benefit after contributing their quota to the levy. The authorities and hospital management must wake up and crack this whip,” he said.
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Public Health Consultant, Anita Asamoah, who also spoke on the show, said parents must also be partly blamed for it.
To her, some persons are forced to pursue medicine and other careers against their will which makes them rebellious and find it difficult to comply with the ethics of the profession.
She urged parents not to force their career options on their children to avert such situations.
Meanwhile, the investigator, Francisca Enchill, disclosed the Ministry of Health and National Health Insurance Authority have initiated steps to deal with the people found culpable.
“They wrote to us to request for the tape to aid their investigation and we have provided that to them. So I am glad we are making headway on achieving results,” she said.
