Administrator of the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, Adjoa Obuobia Darko-Opoku, has dismissed claims that the newly established Fund duplicates the work of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), insisting that the initiative rather complements Ghana’s healthcare financing structure.
Speaking at the Government Accountability Series in Accra, Mrs. Darko-Opoku explained that Ghana’s healthcare financing architecture operates like a three-tier pyramid, with each institution playing a distinct role.
According to her, “At the base is free primary healthcare, which delivers essential primary healthcare services such as disease prevention and health promotion interventions. In the middle sits the National Health Insurance Authority, which covers broad outpatient and inpatient healthcare needs. At the apex is the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, which focuses on specialized tertiary-level care and supports patients where National Health Insurance Scheme coverage is limited or unavailable.”
She further clarified that while the NHIA primarily provides financial risk protection, the Ghana Medical Trust Fund operates with a broader mandate under Act 1144.
“While the National Health Insurance Authority is principally a health financing institution offering financial risk protection, the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, by contrast, has a broader specialist mandate covering patient support, infrastructure and equipment investment, specialist training, and medical research,” she stated.
Mrs. Darko-Opoku noted that the Trust Fund has been built around four key strategic pillars: financial support for specialized medical care, investment in medical equipment and infrastructure, specialist workforce development, and support for medical research.
She revealed that the Fund provides direct financial support to patients suffering from chronic non-communicable diseases such as cancer, kidney disease, cardiovascular conditions, stroke, and other complex illnesses.
The Administrator disclosed that since the Secretariat began operations in September 2025, significant progress has been made in implementing the government’s flagship healthcare agenda.
According to her, the Board of Trustees, inaugurated in October 2025, established four key subcommittees to accelerate implementation and ensure accountability.
She said the Fund also formed a Joint Technical Working Committee with the NHIA to align benefits packages and lay the foundation for the nationwide rollout of patient support systems.
Mrs. Darko-Opoku painted a worrying picture of Ghana’s healthcare infrastructure after a nationwide assessment conducted by the Trust Fund across 62 hospitals.
“The findings revealed the urgent need for the retooling of our healthcare facilities. Across all facilities assessed, there were only two MRI machines and five mammogram machines. Additionally, there are only two radiotherapy machines within the public sector and one in the private sector, located in Accra and Kumasi,” she disclosed.
She added that the northern sector of Ghana currently has only two practicing cardiologists serving millions of residents, exposing severe inequalities in access to specialized healthcare.
“These gaps underscore the necessity for sustained investment,” she stressed.