Dialysis price hikes: A sensitive gov’t won’t remove subsidies on consumables – Ayeh
A member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Communications Team, Dr. Sammy Ayeh, has said the increment in the cost of dialysis amounts to the NPP government’s insensitivity to the sufferings of patients.
He accused the NPP government of removing the subsidy components on dialysis consumables, which have resulted in increases in health essentials.
The cost of dialysis at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital has seen about a 29 percent increment. Dozens of dialysis patients have been forced to skip their life-saving treatments due to an increase in cost.
The price hike, from 380 to 491, has rendered the treatment unaffordable for many, plunging them into a desperate situation.
These patients, already grappling with the challenges of managing their health conditions, now find themselves in an impossible dilemma. For these patients, it’s a bitter pill to swallow.
Speaking on The Big Issue on TV3 on Tuesday, Dr. Sammy Ayeh criticised the Akufo-Addo-led NPP government for inadequate investment in the health sector, emphasising that the NPP’s propaganda about the sector has been exposed.
“Today the result is that dialysis patients are on TV crying; they are telling us that they are not able to pay, they won’t be able to pay [the new fees] and this is a death warrant to many of them. What has been the result of the supposed subsidies and investments he is talking about?
READ ALSO:
“Any sensitive government that is willing to curtail this problem will first of all not even remove subsidies on these consumables and will not increase import duties on these consumables. It will not wait for a four-million-cedis debt to be accumulated before some measures are taken. This is the post-facto rationalisation that politicians, especially in the NPP do,” he said.
Patients share their frustrations
Meanwhile, some patients who are on dialysis have shared their frustrations regarding the price hikes.
Speaking to TV3’s Noble Crosby Annan, a kidney patient, Abigail Ohenewaa Mintah, said the distressing aspect of the situation is the fact that the cost hike was approved by Parliament.
She expressed her frustration, stating, “I skipped my session as a result of the price increase. I can’t eat although I am hungry, and it is affecting me a lot because I don’t want to be too heavy.”
Kwaku Kwarteng, another patient, echoed similar sentiments, saying, “Now you are even afraid to drink water or eat because you don’t know where you are going to get money for the dialysis.”
However, the President of the Dialysis Association, Kojo Bafour Ahenkora, has urged authorities to reconsider the decision.
“If it’s Parliament who did this, we beg them to revisit the issues and do something about it,” he said, emphasising that the increment could be reversed while efforts to include dialysis treatment costs under the National Health Insurance Scheme are finalised.
