In order to give more benefits to enrolees, the Lagos State Health Management Agency (LASHMA) has launched three new health insurance products.
This, according to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, was done to expand benefit packages for subscribers of the state health scheme known as Ilera Eko – a gesture borne out of the administration’s commitment to ensuring Lagos residents have access to affordable and quality healthcare and get more value for their money.
He was represented by the First Lady, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, during the unveiling of the three new health insurance products in Lagos.
The benefit package was reviewed based on the findings of an actuarial study conducted with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation-funded Strategic Purchasing for Family Planning, Maternal, New-Born and Child Health (SP4FP/MNCH) Project.
The SP4FP/MNCH Project implementation is led by the Health Systems Consult Limited (HSCL).
The actuarial study, though funded by a family planning project, took an integrated MNCH approach and also included the implication of adding HIV/AIDS, TB, some additional secondary services, as well as cancer care, on cost of care and eventual premium to be paid by enrollees.
The findings showed that integrating the full complement of family planning and some HIV and TB services into the base benefit package didn’t change the premium, because the number of enrollees that will be receiving these services and cost of the services are small relative to the entire pool of insured people and given the risk sharing across all enrollees.
As a result, LASHMA expended its base package to integrate additional FP, HIV and TB services at the same premium of N8,500 ($20.7) per enrollee per year.
In his address during the unveiling of the expanded benefits package of ILERA EKO, Sanwo-Olu said the creation of the new range of plans and expansion of the state health insurance scheme was borne out of the need to cover more health challenges, accommodate prevalent medical conditions and address economic realities of residents, especially those in the informal sector. This, he stressed, prompted the state government, in collaboration with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to conduct actuarial analysis on the existing benefits package. He explained that the results of the study informed the design of an improved standard health benefit plan at no additional cost to the enrolees as well as the development of other health plans to address the health needs of Lagos residents.
Pointing out that the expansion has provided a platform for senior citizens in the state and Lagosians in the Diaspora to have the opportunity of accessing the scheme, Sanwo-Olu added that the health insurance expansion also prioritises the welfare of the vulnerable in the state. The scheme has been prepared to ensure that everyone in Lagos, irrespective of their socio-economic backgrounds, receives the best and most affordable healthcare services in any of their chosen facilities. There is also the Diaspora plan, which enables residents in the Diaspora to buy health plans for their parents and relatives living in Lagos.
The Commissioner for Health, Prof Akin Abayomi, said the launch of the new plans by LASHMA is a push for universal advancement of the health sector in the state and urged Lagos residents to use the opportunity to secure their health now rather than waiting until they are sick. The state needs a radical transformation of the health sectors and the health insurance scheme is the solution to attain universal health coverage as well as affordable health financing for all, he said.
The General Manager of LASHMA, Dr. Emmanuella Zamba, said affordability remains a major part of the new health plans, adding that the good health of residents is the priority of the agency. She explained that the rebranding was necessitated by the need to include the informal sector, which constitutes about 75 per cent of the population of the state into the health scheme, maintaining that the improved benefits package would afford them the opportunity to have quality healthcare. The LASHMA boss, therefore, urged all Lagosians to enrol on the scheme without delay.
In her goodwill message, the representative of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Dr Caroline Jehu-Appia who is the Deputy Director, Health, Nutrition and Eradication and representing Dr Jeremie Zougrana, the Director, Nigeria Country Office, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, congratulated the state as a trail blazer and encouraged other states and the NHIS to toe same line.
With the launch of its new health insurance packages, Lagos is already on track with the implementation of the revised national policy on population for sustainable development launched by President Muhammadu Buhari earlier this month. All stakeholders urged all Lagosians to subscribe to the health insurance scheme so that they can receive healthcare services when they need them, without paying at the point of service delivery.