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The Government of Sierra Leone has begun rolling out a redesigned cost-recovery scheme aimed at making medicines more affordable and accessible across the country.
The initiative is being led by the National Medical Supplies Agency (NMSA) under the Ministry of Health, with the first phase of district-level engagements already completed in six districts in the Southern and Eastern Regions.
According to the Managing Director of NMSA, Madam Jatu Abdulai, the engagements were conducted to introduce the redesigned cost-recovery scheme to district health governance structures and to solicit their input to ensure the sustainability of the programme.
Madam Abdulai stated that the primary objective of the cost-recovery scheme is to enhance access to quality and affordable medicines for the public while promoting accountability within the healthcare system.
She explained that the redesigned scheme is intended to complement the Government’s Free Health Care Initiative and to serve segments of the population who do not benefit from that programme.
She further disclosed that a key feature of the new scheme is the direct procurement of drugs and medical supplies from manufacturers, eliminating third-party suppliers. According to her, this approach is expected to ensure the availability of affordable, high-quality medicines nationwide.
The engagement team, which included officials from the Directorate of Pharmaceutical Services and the Pharmacy Board of Sierra Leone, also visited health facilities to assess available space and infrastructure to determine their readiness for effective implementation of the scheme at the facility level.
In a related development, NMSA, in collaboration with the Directorate of Pharmaceutical Services, the Pharmacy Board, and the Directorate of Stores and Inventory at the Ministry of Finance, is conducting a regional tour across the South and East to strengthen and streamline health supply chain systems.
The tour began at the Kailahun District Health Management Team and is targeting District Health Management Teams and public health facilities. Discussions have focused on strengthening human resources, improving operational structures, establishing District Supply Chain Technical Working Groups, and preparing for the rollout of the cost-recovery scheme scheduled for June this year.
Officials said the purpose of the ongoing engagement is to inform key health governance structures about the design of the scheme while gathering their input to ensure successful implementation. The team is also assessing health facilities’ infrastructure to determine their preparedness for the new system.
Over the past two days, the delegation has visited the District Health Management Teams in Kailahun, Kenema, Pujehun, and Bo, as well as several hospitals. The exercise is expected to continue in the Western Area and the Northern Region as part of efforts to strengthen and sustain the scheme nationwide.
Authorities say the overall goal of the initiative is to improve the availability of quality, affordable medicines, promote accountability, and enhance service delivery within Sierra Leone’s health system.
