1 Accepted Version 19 May 2019 Understanding Qualitative and Community Indicators of Poverty for National Health Insurance Scheme Exemptions in Ghana Dr Da Costa Aboagye Health Promotion and Public Health, College of Nursing, Midwifery and Healthcare, University of West London, UK Email: DaCosta.Aboagye@uwl.ac.uk Telephone: 00442082094067 Professor Jane South School of Community Studies, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, UK Email: J.South@leedsbeckett.ac.uk Telephone: +44 113 812 4406 Professor Hafiz T.A. Khan (Corresponding Author) The Graduate School, University of West London, St Mary’s Road, London, UK Email: hafiz.khan@uwl.ac.uk Telephone: 00442082312953 Abstract The exemptions of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) for poor people in Ghana have not been sufficiently explored. Using a qualitative approach that involved gathering and analysing viewpoints from the community, this paper investigates the factors that are used to determine NHIS exemptions in Ghana. Focus group discussions (FGDs) and interviews of key informants (KIs) were conducted during the period (August 2015 to August 2016) within the Ashanti and Greater Accra regions in Ghana. Nine FGDs were conducted in nine different communities with 72 respondents. Nine KIs, including local and national policy-makers, civil servants and local community members were also interviewed. A sampling method was adopted to capture a range of understandings of community indicators of poverty for NHIS exemptions. Community perceptions of the indicators of poverty included interconnected