President John Dramani Mahama has announced that the government is targeting full national coverage of its Free Primary Healthcare Programme by the end of 2028.
He said the programme, which was launched earlier this year, has already been rolled out in 135 of the targeted 150 districts under its first phase.
President Mahama made the announcement during a Free Primary Healthcare Durbar in the Daffiama-Bussie-Issa District in the Upper West Region as part of his two-day Resetting Ghana Tour.
According to the President, the remaining 15 districts under the first phase will be brought onto the programme by the end of this year.
He said the ultimate goal was to extend Free Primary Healthcare to all 261 districts in Ghana by the end of 2028.
President Mahama explained that the programme was introduced to address one of the major barriers to healthcare access, the distance between communities and health facilities.
He said although National Health Insurance coverage had increased from about 60 percent to 76 percent since the government assumed office, a significant number of Ghanaians still struggled to access healthcare because they lived too far from health facilities.
“When people cannot come to the health facility, government must take the health facility to the people,” he said.
Under the programme, patients visiting CHPS compounds, health centres and polyclinics will receive basic diagnosis, treatment, antenatal and postnatal services, as well as treatment for common illnesses such as malaria, typhoid and diarrhoeal diseases, free of charge.
President Mahama stressed that patients would not need an NHIS card to access services at the primary healthcare level.
He said the programme was both curative and preventive, with community health professionals expected to conduct home visits and screen residents for common health conditions.
The President said the initiative was also expected to contribute to reducing maternal mortality by ensuring that pregnant women receive regular antenatal care and are referred to district hospitals when specialised treatment is required.
He also announced plans for the establishment of Health Kiosks at busy commercial areas, including markets and transport terminals.
The kiosks will have consultation facilities and digital links to district hospitals to enable health workers to consult doctors remotely through telemedicine.
President Mahama said government is also partnering with the Ghana Private Road Transport Union (GPRTU) to establish Health Kiosks at lorry stations, where commercial drivers could be screened for hypertension and other health conditions.
He said the broader objective was to move Ghana closer to Universal Health Coverage, where every citizen can access affordable healthcare when needed.
Story by: Emmanuel Romeo Tetteh(#RomeoWrites✍️)/ Presidential Affairs Correspondent | Ghana 🇬🇭