Why ‘Mahama Cares’ must be cared for

THE Ghana Medical Trust Fund (GMTF), popularly known as Mahama Cares, is an important addition to Ghana’s health financing system. Established under Act 1144 in July 2025, it provides financial support to eligible patients who need specialised treatment for conditions such as cancer, kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, stroke and diabetes. The Fund is meant to complement the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) and Free Primary Healthcare by helping close the financing gap for high-cost specialised treatment.

As the Fund marks its first year of implementation, I commend its Administrator, Obuobia Darko-Opoku, whom I met at the Young Professionals and Youth Coalition Awards at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Kumasi in 2023, where we were both awardees, for helping turn this vision into practice. Kudos to the entire team.

The GMTF’s 50-case pilot supported patients aged six months to 85 across 11 hospitals. At the National Cardiothoracic Centre at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital alone, 15 patients were sponsored during the pilot, and more than 150 have been onboarded, about 110 of them children, according to the Centre’s Head, Dr Kow Entsua-Mensah. The Fund also replaced the Centre’s cardiac catheterisation laboratory, in use by the end of July 2026, where more than 60 patients have since undergone complex lifesaving procedures.

The need for such support is obvious. Ghana’s 2023 STEPS Survey, a nationally representative study of adults aged 18 to 69, found that about 22 per cent had elevated blood pressure or hypertension, equivalent to about 3.7 million adults. About 1.9 million Ghanaians with raised blood pressure were unaware of their condition and were not on medication. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says non-communicable diseases cause nearly half of all deaths in Ghana.

The financial burden is equally concerning. A 2024 study led by researchers from the University of Ghana’s Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) examined 217 breast cancer patients at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital and Sweden Ghana Medical Centre. It found a median first-year treatment cost of about GH¢31,000, based on 2019 prices. Patients treated in the public facilities studied had a median cost of GH¢30,000, compared with GH¢55,000 for those treated at the private facility. About 38 per cent of the overall cost was indirect, including productivity losses affecting patients and their families.

The key question now is sustainability. Ghana needs a national strategy to finance chronic disease care sustainably, built around four key priorities.

First, establish reliable national data. The government should make better use of existing health information systems to estimate how many people live with conditions eligible for GMTF support, and what care costs from diagnosis through treatment and rehabilitation. The 2023 STEPS Survey is a useful baseline, but routine data must be strengthened to support continuous planning. Without reliable estimates of disease burden, treatment costs and future demand, it is difficult to determine how much funding is required and how many patients can be supported.

Second, strengthen complementary private health insurance. Employer-sponsored private health insurance can complement NHIS coverage. The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) Cancer Foundation is an example of member-based financing. According to the Ghana News Agency, about 260,000 GNAT members contribute GH¢5.00 monthly to a cancer fund that supports members and some dependents. However, the Foundation says these contributions are insufficient for the growing number of members diagnosed with cancer each year.

Can Mahama Cares stay sustainable as costs rise? The government could therefore consider legally approved incentives for employers and labour organisations that provide additional health insurance for their employees and members. Private-sector and philanthropic contributions could also complement public financing, provided such arrangements are transparent, predictable and independently audited.

Third, strengthen prevention through NHIS. NHIS should offer age- and risk-appropriate screening within its approved benefits and use digital reminders to encourage members to access these services. Ghana’s hypertension burden shows why prevention, early detection and effective management matter: the STEPS Survey found that only about 10 per cent of people with hypertension had it under control. Free Primary Healthcare can provide an important platform for screening and early intervention at the community and primary-care levels.

Finally, strengthen accountability, monitoring and evaluation. GMTF should publish annual information on funds received, funds actually released, patients supported, services provided and outstanding financial obligations. Clear reporting would let citizens, policymakers, researchers and healthcare professionals monitor and evaluate what the Fund is achieving and what resources will be required to sustain it.

As Ghana’s burden of chronic disease grows, Mahama Cares must itself be cared for through sustainable financing, evidence-based planning, prevention, accountability, monitoring and evaluation. Its success should ultimately be reflected in whether Ghanaians can get the treatment they need without financial hardship or without turning to family, friends, religious institutions and social media for help. That is how the Fund can deliver the greatest benefit to society, lasting value to Ghana’s health system and contribute to improving the health and quality of life of Ghanaians.

BY DR NICHOLAS ADDAE MENSAH

The writer is a medical doctor, development economist, and Health Policy Analyst at International Perspective for Policy & Governance (IPPG), a policy think tank based in Accra, Ghana.

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