By Bishnu Pandey, Kathmandu, Sept. 24: The health institutions listed by the government to provide the services as per the health insurance are on the verge of shutting down the services as their payment has been long overdue.

The health insurance board informed that the government has yet to pay the institutions over Rs. 3.5 billion for the services.

The Nepal Korea Friendship Municipality Hospital (NKFMH) operated by the Madhyapur Municipality in Bhaktapur district has stopped providing the services under the health insurance because the government has not provided it the amount for the services provided.

A board member and the epileptologist of NKFMH Dr Dipendra Kumar Raushan said that the health services under the insurance scheme have been put off effective from September 17 as the payment from the government has remained due which has created problems even to purchase necessary medicine.

He said that services being provided under health insurance facilities were halted out of compulsion as the government did not pay the insurance amount.

He said that they have sent a letter to the Health Insurance Board for reimbursement of the payment.

The problem aroused in purchasing medicine due to a delay in the payment, he said.

The Executive Director of the Health Insurance Board, Dr. Damodar Basaula, said that the payment to the hospitals will begin from this week.

He attributed the delay in payment to the lack of amount and human resources.

Some payments were made from the premium of the insurance while the remaining payment will be made in a few days.

According to the Health Insurance Board, 429 hospitals across the country that include community, private and government hospitals have been providing health services under the health insurance policy. Some 1.3 million families and 4.5 million citizens have been insured under the health insurance policy. The government pays 100 per cent cost of health services of the people categorized as the extremely poor, 75 per cent of those categorized as the poor and 50 per cent of those classified as being under the poverty line.