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Tag: National Health Insurance Scheme

  • Labour Day: Osun to begin implementation of NHIS

    Osun State governor, Mr. Gboyega Oyetola, has promised to begin implementation of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) this month.

    Speaking at this year edition of Workers’ Day Celebration in Osogbo City Stadium, the governor said the implementation will facilitate accessible and beneficial healthcare to the people.

    According to him, the government will begin to release its counterpart funding by the end of May.

    He commended the workers for being supportive to the policies, actions and programmes of his administration by being committed, dedicated and patriotic.

    The Governor spoke on Wednesday at the 2019 Workers’ Day Celebration, the first since the inception of his administration, at the Osogbo City Stadium. 

    Oyetola was represented by Deputy Governor Benedict Alabi, who was supported by other top government functionaries including Secretary to the State Government, Pince Wole Oyebamiji; Chief of Staff to the Governor,  Dr. Charles Akinola and Head of Service Dr. Olowogboyega Oyebade.

    Chief Judge Justice Adepele Ojo represented by the Chief Registrar, Mr Lawrence Arojo and Speaker Osun House of Assembly; Hon. Najeem Salam was represented by Chairman House Committee on Labour matters, Hon. Abiodun Awolola.

    The Nigeria Labour Congress Chairman in Osun State, Jacob Adekomi, his Trade Union Congress counterpart, Adebowale Adekola; the state Chairman, Joint Negotiation Council, Bayo Adejumo, and other labour leaders were also at the ceremony.

    The Governor noted that the workers in the state had displayed competence and pulled their weight as the genuine engine room of the government.

    ‎ Oyetola said: “For these and more, I commend and celebrate the workers for a display of unparalleled commitment, industry and patriotism that are in tandem with the 21st Century competitive world.

    “The conduct and character of workers have further given vent to the reputation of the state as one of the most peaceful states in the nation.”

    Governor Oyetola pledged his administration’s commitment to improved welfare for all categories of workers in the state.

    He said his administration had been working assiduously to ensure equitable distribution of resources and services to achieve sustainable and competitive development.

    He said: “My Administration is people and worker oriented, indeed, people and workers are at the centre of all we do.

    “It is the resolve of this administration to give improved welfare to workers from time to time, the little we have been able to provide during this period of economic crunch is proof that we shall sustain the tempo as our plans bear fruits and the fortune of the state continues to look up.

    “In the health sector, we are revitalizing nine General Hospitals and 332 health centres, one per ward, to ensure quality and adequate healthcare. 

    “The component of this intervention includes rehabilitation of the buildings, provision of relevant drugs and equipment as well as training and re-training of staff.

    “You will all recall that during the presentation of the Budget 2019 speech to the House of Assembly last December, I promised the implementation of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) as a way of delivering adequate healthcare for all. We shall commence the implementation this month.

    “Government will start contributing its counterpart funds while also taking care of the vulnerable in the State. I urge the leadership of Labour to urgently play its own part so that, together, we shall achieve the objective of delivering quality and adequate healthcare to our people.

    “This year’s May Day is a toast to courage, patriotism, understanding, creativity and support in honour of our dear solution-seeking workers. 

    “I would like to appreciate the leadership of workers’ Unions across the State for their tremendous guidance and direction, which have stood our dear State out as a Land of Peace and a State of the Virtuous.”

    ‎Chairman, Osun NLC, Comrade Adekomi, lauded the state government for prioritising the welfare of its workers. 

    Adekomi hailed Governor Oyetola for sustaining the full payment of salaries and pensions to all categories of active and passive workers since assumption of office.

    ‎He appealed to the state government not to relent in its effort at building a virile, wealthy and healthy workforce that will be a pride to all.

    He said: “We appreciate the effort of the present administration in continuous payment of full salary to all and sundry in the state civil service.

    “We shall always be grateful to our governor having listening ears to our yearning as we look forward for a crisis free tenure.” 

  • National insurance key to healthcare delivery, says Osinbajo

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday said an effective National Health Insurance scheme remains the best panacea for development of the health sector and an efficient healthcare delivery in the country.

    This was contained in a statement  by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande.

    Speaking while receiving a delegation of the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, in his office, Prof Osinbajo said, “We have a good opportunity to do something about the National Health Insurance; it is obvious that government, both Federal Government and State Governments, cannot adequately provide healthcare for almost 200million Nigerian people.”

    Citing India as an example, he mentioned that India has the most privatized healthcare system in the world, with individual states being responsible for providing healthcare.

    In addition, VP Osinbajo emphasized the need for “Doctors to be remunerated properly regardless of their location, either rural or urban locations. We must find a logical way of addressing this issue.”

    He added “We must ensure that the states pick up their own part of the responsibility of providing healthcare in their States.  With the National Economic Council, NEC, there is the opportunity to talk to State governors and one of the things we do is to look at the human development indices, especially for Primary Health Care.”

    Read also: Osinbajo urges journalists to expose corruption

    “There are States that are simply not doing enough and we must ensure that they step up to the plate.  States must be held to account because a lot of the responsibilities are theirs,” he said

    But he emphasized that National Health Insurance is the key in resolving a lot of the financial problems in the Health Sector, adding that this administration has made the National Health Insurance central to the plans for the healthcare system in APC’s Next Level document.

    Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole, highlighted the ministry’s strides in achieving the Universal Health Coverage towards the expansion of the National Health Insurance Scheme.

    He thanked the Presidency for the presidential assent of the Appropriation Act, which for the first time, approved the release of the 1% for the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund, and disclosed that the Ministry of Finance has released the first quarter allocation of N13.7billion.

    He said the Basic Health Care Provision Fund would also help in fast-tracking the development of the National Health Insurance Scheme.

    President of the Nigerian Medical Association, Dr. Francis Faduyile, congratulated the President and Vice President on their victory at the 2019 Presidential elections.

    He also acknowledged the administration’s efforts in the health sector, which includes the signing of the Residency Training Act, the release of the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund, as well as the recently improved Cancer Centre in Lagos University Teaching Hospital.

  • Nine teens’ health solution wins innovation challenge

    Team Neptune, a group of nine teenagers, has won the InterswitchSPAK 1.0 Innovation Challenge.

    Their technological solution to provide Nigerians with easier access to the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) was adjudged the best of nine teams for the InterswitchSPAK 1.0 Innovation Challenge, which is a segment of the InterswitchSPAK National Science competition, organised by Interswitch Foundation.

    The teams were asked to come up with solutions to three salient socio-economic issues in health care, public transportation and education, with focus on the out-of-school concerns leveraging technology. Each team was headed by Interswitch staff who volunteered as mentors.

    Team Neptune, made up of nine SS2 pupils, was mentored by Princess Edo-Osagie, Inalegwu Alogwu and Abiodun Adebisi.

    The nine-man team’s health solution makes provision for NHIS policy holders to get connected to web doctors through the internet, or telemedicine option for those without access to the internet.

    Noting that many Nigerians prefer going to pharmacies for treatment, Team Neptune also proposed that neighbourhood pharmacies be empowered by the NHIS so that patients, who consult the Web Doctors, can purchase prescribed drugs from partner pharmacists in their locality.

    Group CEO/ Founder, Interswitch, Mitchell Elegbe,  MD, Yoke Solutions, Tarebi Alebiosu  and CEO, Level 5 Lab, Chika Nwobi, constituted the jury saddled with the daunting task of selecting a winning team from the brilliant lot.

    The two major criteria used in deciding the winners were ideas and presentation. For ideas, the jury considered the integration of technology, attempt at defining the opportunities, feasibility of the idea, how impactful it was and how disruptive it was. For the presentation, the jury considered the delivery, creativity brought to bear and demonstration of team work.

    Commenting on the concept, Group Chief Product and Marketing Officer at Interswitch, Cherry Eromosele,  said: “The idea behind the Innovation Challenge was to task these young ones on problem-solving with the use of technology. Throughout the challenge, we saw the students employ several problem-solving models, using technology. I believe it was a worthwhile experience.”

    Following their announcement as the Innovation Challenge winner, Team Neptune will receive the InterswitchSPAK 1.0 Founder’s Award.

  • ‘Fed Govt ‘ll implement report on suspended NHIS boss‘

    THE Federal Government yesterday promised speedy implementation of the recommendations contained in the report of the Presidential Independent Fact-Finding panel on National Health Insurance Scheme (PIFFP-NHIS).

    The government had set up the panel to investigate allegations of fraud against the suspended NHIS Executive Secretary, Prof. Usman Yusuf.

    Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Mr. Boss Mustapha made the pledge while receiving the report from the panel in his office.

    According to him, the report would be submitted to President Muhammadu Buhari and would be expeditiously processed for implementation.

    The content of the report was not made available to reporters in Abuja yesterday.

    The  NHIS Board Chairman, Ifenne Enyanatu, in October announced the suspension of Yusuf, after obtaining permission from the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole.

    Receiving the report of the presidential panel, Mustapha said: “I receive this report with deep sense of appreciation and I assure you that the report would be expeditiously processed for implementation.

    “Let me assure you that the decision of government on the recommendations of the panel will be made public at the appropriate time.

    “I also want to assure all Nigerians that this government remains very committed to making life worth living.”

    Chairman of the committee Dr. Bukar Hassan said the panel did not complete its work within the two weeks it was given because of the quantum of the documents it had to go through and the number of stakeholders it needed to interface with, apart from the need to be fair, transparent and unbiased.

    He said the report contained recommendations, which may be considered as short, medium and long term.

    “We particularly wish to draw the attention of the government to the key recommendations for urgent attention. It is our belief and aspiration that our recommendations as contained in the report will go a long way in repositioning the scheme as they proffer solutions to the challenges that have hindered the scheme in achieving the laudable objectives for which it was established,” Hassan said.

  • Compulsory Health Insurance Scheme coming – Osinbajo

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has disclosed plans for establishment of a compulsory Health Insurance Scheme as part of the Buhari presidency’s Next Level agenda.

    According to the plan, he said that the government will pay the premium for the poor.

    Osinbajo spoke on Tuesday night, as Guest of Honour, at the Invest Africa forum hosted by the publishers of Africa Report magazine at London’s Royal Society hall.

    Osinbajo, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Laolu Akande, said: “On healthcare, to cut the long story short, where we are going is the National Health Insurance.  At the moment, we have National Health Insurance, which is not compulsory.

    “So we are looking at compulsory National Health Insurance and we are also looking at how to pay the premium, especially for the poorest.”

    Continuing, the Vice President who took questions from the publishers of Africa Report and members of the audience, explained the plan was to “have a co-payment arrangement; government will provide payments of premium or free medical care for 40 percent, which is the poorest segment, and the other 60 percent will be compulsory co-payments for formal and informal workers.”

    He added: “The resources, the money from the National Health Insurance are the way to fund medical care. At the moment, most people who seek medical help pay out of pockets, obviously that’s one of the reasons why we have the poor health indices at the moment.

    “So we think that health scheme will resource healthcare and help greatly, in not just rewarding our healthcare practitioners, but also in resourcing the hospitals and helping most of our people to get the kind of health care that they may need.”

    Responding to a question from a member of the audience on the prospects of the Petroleum Industry Bill, the Vice President said it could still be signed into law, after all the necessary amendments have been made, possibly before the end of the 8th Assembly.

    “We hope that the bill will become law before the end of the 8th Assembly,” Osinbajo said.

    Answering another question from the moderator of the forum, Mr. Patrick Smith, who is the Editor-in-Chief of The Africa Report, on the chances of the APC winning the forthcoming 2019 elections, Osinbajo said in the 16 years of the PDP rule, the party had nothing tangible to show Nigerians despite earning over $382 billion in oil revenue between 2010- 2014.

    “The PDP has not cured itself of corruption,” he said

     

    He also urged Nigerians to ignore the party in the coming elections.

     

     

  • Suspended NHIS Boss drags Ministers, NHIS to court

    Professor Usman Yusuf, the embattled Executive Secretary, National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), has dragged two ministers and NHIS to a Federal High Court in Abuja, challenging his suspension from office.

    In the suit number: FHC/ABJ/CS/1220/2018, Yusuf instituted legal action against the Honourable Minister of Health, and Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice as well as the NHIS.

    The six-page summons was filed by Chief Uchechukwu Obi (SAN) of Alliance Law Firm, Abuja, on behalf of the plaintiff.

    According to the document made available to the News agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja, the respondents are expected to cause appearance within 21 days after the service of the summons on them, inclusive of the day of service.

    The summons read in part thus: “The plaintiff prayed whether the Governing Council of the NHIS has the powers under the provision of the NHIS Act, particularly Sections 6 and 7 of the Act, to suspend or remove from office the plaintiff who was appointed by the President.

    “Whether the Governing Council of NHIS has the powers under the provision of NHIS Act to discipline the plaintiff or to investigate allegations made against him as purported by their internal memorandum dated Oct.19, 2018.

    “Whether the Hon. Minister of Health under the NHIS Act Section 47 of the Act is equipped with the statutory powers to authorise the suspension from office of the ES of NHIS without the approval of the President.

    “Whether the decision of the Governing Council to suspend the ES of the NHIS taken by 4 out of 11 members of the Council can be said to be a decision of the council in accordance with the NHIS Act.

    Read Also: Buhari orders NHIS boss to proceed on administrative leave

    “Whether the Governing Council can appoint the General Manager, Legal Department, or any other employee of the scheme to oversee the affairs of the scheme in acting capacity without the approval of the President,’’ among others.

    Yusuf therefore prayed the court to determine all the aforementioned questions in his favour and consequently sought for the following reliefs:

    “A declaration that the Governing Council of NHIS lacks powers under the provisions of the NHIS Act to suspend or remove the plaintiff who was appointed by the President for a five year term.

    “A declaration that the members of the council lacks the powers under the provision of the NHIS Act to discipline, or set up the machinery to discipline the plaintiff or investigate allegations made against him as purported by the internal memorandum dated October 19.

    “A declaration that the internal memorandum dated October 19 which was purportedly issued by the council and signed on their behalf by its Chairman in which it purported to have suspended the plaintiff as the ES of NHIS is ultra Vires, null and void and of no effect.

    “An order of court setting aside and cancelling the purported suspension of the plaintiff from office as the ES of NHIS.

    “An order of court reinstating the plaintiff as the ES of the NHIS.

    “An order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants, their members, servants, employees, agents, officers or any person from disturbing, obstructing the plaintiff from carrying on his official duties as the ES of the NHIS,’’ among others.

    A copy of the summons was stamped received by the NHIS head office in Abuja on Oct. 30.

    The case is yet to be assigned for date for mention to be fixed.

    News Agency Of Nigeria recalls that Yusuf was first suspended by the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole, on July 6, 2017, over alleged maladministration, but was recalled by the Presidency on Feb. 6, 2018.

    Again, the Governing Council of NHIS led by Mrs Ifenne Enyanatu, later slammed an indefinite suspension on Yusuf on Oct. 18 over similar allegations of fraud.

    The latest action prompted the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha, to advise members of boards and governing councils at a retreat that they do not have powers to suspend or meet disciplinary actions on chief executives without recourse to due diligence.

    On Tuesday (Oct. 31), the Presidency asked Yusuf to proceed on administrative leave to allow unfettered investigations of the allegations leveled against him.

    It appointed Mr Ben Omogo, Director, Administration Office in the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of Federation to oversee the affairs of the scheme.

    The government also instituted a 7-man panel led by Dr Hassan Bukar, and Mrs Jummai Idako from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation as Secretary, to probe and report their findings within two weeks for appropriate action.

  • The NHIS minefield

    The imbroglio surrounding the purported suspension of Prof. Usman Yusuf, the executive secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), has generated different shades of controversy within and outside the agency. There is hard-line obstinacy by the parties to the matter, with the governing board of the NHIS insisting on its power to suspend Yusuf, while Yusuf maintains that he is only answerable to the president.

    In the background of the clash between Yusuf and the board of the NHIS are the Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) and some staff of the NHIS who want Yusuf gone. Since Yusuf was appointed by the Buhari administration in July 2016, there has been palpable crisis within the NHIS, as it became apparent that it would not be business as usual. Yusuf has personally alleged wide scale corruption at the NHIS, touching on the HMOs, during the years preceding his appointment and he promised to return administrative and financial integrity to the healthcare insurance in Nigeria.

    Yusuf however landed in a pot of his own controversy when NHIS top officials accused him of fraud and mismanagement, including corruption in the handling of about N919 million without due process, and other matters. The Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole, ordered his suspension in June 2017, to clear way for proper investigation of the allegations. However, President Buhari lifted the suspension in February and this, after rumours of tension between Yusuf and the minister of health had seeped into public knowledge.

    The board of the NHIS announced its decision to suspend Yusuf again on October 18, and some of the staff of the NHIS, especially at the Abuja headquarters, openly jubilated the decision and even went further to form themselves into a barricade to prevent Yusuf from gaining access to his office. Yusuf sought the protection of policemen to enter the premises, in protest of the board decision and in defiance of the revolting staff members – a step that has generated separate controversy. The question now is whether Yusuf is a reformer and crusader for positive change or a new player in the field of public corruption that does not play well with others.

    The experience of civil service in Nigeria generally does not cast the revolting staff members of the NHIS in a positive light. They want Nigerians to believe that whatever steps have been taken by them and the board has been in the interest of Nigerians. Interestingly, the HMOs who threatened to challenge, in court, the decision of the president to reinstate the suspended Yusuf earlier in the year, also claimed to be working in the interest of Nigerians.

    Usually, in the civil service, when people bandy together in this manner, it is in protection of their own interests, which, like our politicians, is paramount. In the different claims levied against Yusuf, he is said to be “insubordinate” and to have run the NHIS with an “iron hand” since he took office. In Nigeria, this could be a euphemism for blocking avenues for cash leakage or administrative profiteering. The involvement of the HMOs and their campaign against Yusuf also deepens suspicion of the motivations behind the move against him, especially as Yusuf has not been shy about his criticism of the HMOs or their relevance in the healthcare sector.

    There is data to show that the HMOs have underachieved in all the years the NHIS has engaged them, as they are the recipients of billions of naira from the government which ought to be transmitted to health service providers. It was revealed in hearings before the House of Representatives that the HMOs have only used a fraction of these funds in the manner stipulated, for varying reasons, while the huge excess was not being remitted back to the NHIS.

    In the Nigerian civil service that has been the principal enabler of corruption in public office, racketeering is rife and mafias are often found around major destinations of government funds, for which the NHIS is an example. Neither the staff of the NHIS, who are revolting nor the HMOs have addressed the ghost enrolees of the scheme that have been uncovered and blocked in Yusuf’s time at the helm. Instead, it seems like a campaign of calumny is being orchestrated against Yusuf for daring to shake the NHIS/HMO table of corruption. One suspects that this is why the presidency, and the House of Representatives at a point, have backed Yusuf’s reinstatement.

    In any case, it is not for the staff of the NHIS to handle their dissatisfaction in the manner they did on Monday, October 21. There are processes to be followed for every act in government. The staff of NHIS have no power to suspend or restrict the movement of the executive secretary. Already, there is open controversy as to whether or not the board of the NHIS has this power, as leading legal minds have agreed that the NHIS Act does not expressly confer this power on the board. It would have been sensible for the aggrieved staff to urge the board to seek legal determination rather than subject themselves to suspicion by their overt act that led Yusuf to seek police protection.

    In alleging lack of due process in Yusuf’s management of finance and affairs of the NHIS, one expects that the board would be mindful of following due process in taking any action. Where the process is unclear, and especially when their action is being contested as in this case, it is expected that the board will seek legal advice and redress. Whether backed by the board or not, the physical attempt to restrain Yusuf introduces an element of bias and probable selfish interest and malice into what ought to be a public interest matter.

    Nigerians should not be bamboozled every time someone comes up with stories involving huge sums of money to accuse a government official of corruption, especially when the claim is arising from an organized group of civil servants. Like our politicians, we should not readily take the word of civil servants who have been the greatest collaborators in the history of corruption in Nigeria.

    No part of this opinion is exonerating Yusuf from possible culpability or guilt in any of the accusations made against him. This is a common sense take on the reaction of Nigerian civil servants to a change in leadership which apparently has not been favourable to them, for whatever reasons. One ought to apply caution in a case like this. The EFCC is in possession of a petition against Yusuf, and all pressure ought to be exerted on this agency and the courts to obtain any outcome, not through public campaigns of calumny, blame trading and deflections that have been seen in this case. It does not speak well of our public service or of the understanding of due process that the board and aggrieved staff of the NHIS suggest they have. Where allegations are made in a matter involving the civil service, the smart thing is never to assume that there are any saints.

    The interest of Nigerians is not best served by a board somewhere or a group of civil servants getting their way, it is best served when the processes of government are carried out as prescribed by law. Where the law is sketchy, the law courts should be consulted. Anything outside of this is against the interest of Nigerians, especially when a few people stand to gain more from an outcome. In the end, better management of this issue is a matter of public interest.

  • NHIS: Why I won’t approve budget, by board chair

    Activities at the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) may soon be grounded if the budget impasse between Executive Secretary Prof. Usman Yusuf and the Board of the scheme is not resolved.

    Board Chairman Mrs. Enyantu Ifenne has vowed not to grant approval to the budget submitted by the executive secretary. The budget is padded and lacks transparency, among other flaws, Dr. Ifenne said.

    She argued in an August 20 memo to Yusuf that any attempt to approve the budget would be misconstrued as a conspiracy to defraud the system.

    The council chair implored Yusuf to reflect the council’s positions on all the contentious areas as enumerated and represent the document for authorisation.

    The management and the board have since been undecided over the budget, as the management seems not ready to carry out the directives of the board.

    Hence, the NHIS which is responsible for the regulation of the country’s health insurance scheme, has no budget yet to drive its operation, four months to the end of the year.

    The management’s revised budget submitted to the board proposes revenue/income of N44.92 billion and expenditure of N64.73 billion, with a budget deficit of N19.81 billion. It was rejected for not reflecting the outcome of the board’s deliberations.

    The board rejected the budget because of the 30.6 per cent, which it described as unacceptably high.

    Besides, the board pointed out that the revised budget was embellished with some suspicious duplication of expenditure items worth N264.9 million.

    Other observation made by the board include non-reflection of the N64 million allocation from the Federal Government in the scheme’s revenue projections for the year.

    The council also complained about inflation of the amounts if approved for manpower development. The council at its July 24 emergency meeting resolved that the budgetary provision for various manpower training be pegged at N250 million pending the comprehensive staff auditing.

    The management proposed N1.010 billion. The council asked the management to reduce the proposed trainings.

    The council also frowned against the N50 million budgeted for Corporate Social Responsibility. The initial budget was N100 million, which was rejected by the council. It argued that it was not a justifiable application of insurance funds.

    The council also pointed out the repetition of items under various headings.

    In view of the said observations, the council directed the management to seek technical support from the Ministry of Budget and National Planning or the Budget Office to ensure that the budget aligns with standard formats.

    The council alleged that the management did not comply with its directive. It argued that the format presented by the management makes tracking and evaluation of the budget performance impossible.

    The council also noted: “For the same reasons, the budget summary presented with the proposal is sketchy as it does not, among other flaws, disaggregate expenditure on key budget items, such as Overhead, programmes/capital expenditure.”

    “Lack of transparency in the scheme’s budget inflicts with the principles of good governance, accountability and anti-corruption drive of the Buhari administration,” it said.

    The board insisted that until the necessary amendment agreed on at the 24th July 2018 meeting is carried out, the budget will not have its blessing.

    The scheme has been running on no-budget since the beginning of the year.

    The first attempt to put up a budget was made in 2017 prior to the suspension of the Executive Secretary. The budget was rejected on the ground that it was, unrealistic and a wasteful deployment of fund on white elephant projects.

    Health Minister Prof. Isaac Adewole then directed that the budget be reviewed, which was done by the then acting Executive Secretary, Attahiru Ibrahim.

    The reviewed budget already got the approval of the necessary bodies when Yusuf was reinstated and on resumption of office, he discarded the budget and began a fresh process which was rejected by the board.

    The council noted that the first budget proposal was rejected based on the lack of budget narrative; and expenditures not measurably linked to council strategic objectives. The budget was also said not to have aligned with National Chart of Accounts (NCOA) format and also not complied with standard international best accounting practices.

    This, the council said, is pertinent as NHIS seeks to leverage funds from international development organisations.

  • NHIS delist 23 HMOs, grant 34 provisional nod 

    ..target 10% fresh enrolle annually

     
    The National Health Insurance Scheme Thursday announced that 23 Health Management Organisations, (HMOs) have been axed for failing to meet up with the minimum operational criteria expected of them.

    This is as the scheme set a modest 10% fresh enrollment target annually.

    The decision was reached after a validity test carried out on all the 57 HMOS operating in the sector.

    All HMOs operating in the scheme are expected to renew their accreditation every two years, while some of them had their accreditation last since 2013.

    According to the Chairperson of the Board of NHIS, Mrs. Enyantu Ifenne, only one out of the 57 HMOs actually scored 100% and is therefore granted accreditation to operate.

    Ifenne who briefed the media alongside other members of the board,  noted however that 34 others were granted provisional accreditation until they are able to fulfill all the conditions spelt out for the reaccreditation process, while 23 were denied reaccreditation as they failed to meet the minimum standard.

    Explaining the criterial for scoring the HMOs, She said, “they scored the HMOs based on aggregation of criteria and at the first cut, only 11 out of the 57 HMOs scored over 70 per cent, 40 HMOs scored between 50 and 70 per cent while 6 HMOs scored below 50 per cent.

    “The committee re-examined this and reduce the score further from 70 to 50 percent but only the Defense HMO fulfilled met most of the condition. But if we apply the law, none of the 57 HMOs fully met all the NHIS requirements for accreditation. We have advised that the 11 HMOs that were recommended for provisional re-accreditation should comply with specific critical condition within two to three weeks before they can be fully accredited.”

    She further explained that the 46 HMOs who score below 70 per cent were disaggregated depending on the critical condition they did not fulfill adding that the six HMOs which score less that 50 percent were removed from evaluation. “That means they are not being considered for re-accreditation.”

    Dr. Ifenne said another score they used as a critical irreducible minimum was the adequacy of payoff shares capital. “The payoff share capital for National HMOs is N400 million, zonal coverage is N200 million and the state coverage is N100 million. And this is a critical requirement because the Payoff capital share of a company is a requirement for accreditation and evidence of their financial stability.”

    She also said HMOs were also required to submit their audited financial report from 2014 to 2016 but with criteria, six did not meet the requirements and one did not submit audited financial report and corporate affairs commission document, therefore removed from further consideration.

    She added that the purpose of the conference was to bring to the notice of Nigerians that decree 35 of the scheme gives the council the power to re-accredit HMOs and lay out clearly the condition and processes through the operations and guideline that were drawn down by the Act.

    She also gave some criteria considered for accreditation as; registration with cooperate affairs commission, adequacy of payoff share capital, current asset including fix asset, shareholders composition, company reserve, integrity of shareholders, composition of Board of Directors, current tax clearance of companies, current tax clearance of all Directors, appointment of audit fund and submission of audit account to NHIS as and when due, compliance with Pension PENCOM Act among others.

    The new NHIS board Chairperson who also bemoaned the low number of people participating in the scheme said the board has set a moderate target of 10% increase annually in the bid to ensure universal coverage.

    She said, “It is humiliating the fact that health facilities are reluctant to accept NHIS lives (Enrollee) is an indictment on NHIS as public entity because what we see with this reaccreditation is accumulation of regulatory failure. Accreditation should not be the only time we know that the company is bankrupt or nonexistence or sold to South African entity. If we were up and doing and on our toes in applying the regulatory powers giving us under the law, this should not happen. And this board is committed; this will not be allowed to happen. We have directed management to submit to us at the next board meeting the protocol and plan of regulation of HMOs. We will approve and put in place immediately this includes monthly returns, examine their accounts because we have the power to examine their accounts. So we will know when they are defaulting. We are committed to flipping the organogram. The value chain, currently, the NHIS at the top, the HMOs, the healthcare providers are the next rung and the enrolle are at the bottom and are caught t in the veil of the power tussle. Elephants have being fighting, grass is hurt. Grass is the people we call enrollee. I hate that word. Enrollee just reminds me as if they were conscripted. They have no choice, no actions that they have to take poor service whether they like it or not or opt out.”

    She also noted that the board was prepared to change the current trend that places the enrollee at the bottom of the ladder. She said enrollee would be moved to the top of the ladder; stressing that the satisfaction of the enrollee would be the watch word in the new dispensation.

    She also charged the HMOs to do their business transparently and accountability while making profit.”

    She also assured them that the reaccreditation exercise was not meant to cripple any HMOs.

    “With this shift, the healthcare providers will be held to account not only for the quality care but also for the humanity because from the information we have most in the scheme are treated as second rate patients. So we all NHIS, HMOs and healthcare providers have to work so that the enrolle is at the tip of the value chain and the enrollee becomes the first in the universal coverage.

    “We are going to redefine the processes and focus NHIS to stand up to its regulatory function. The failure to meet our regulatory function is the reason why this plague has being spread, not validated and no punitive action taking. We want to change that, we must change that. The HMOs as you can see are doing their best but they have not been regulated appropriately, we must apply the tools. They are willingly to subject themselves to regulations if we stand up to our duties. I don’t think any of them, except may be a few rascals want to ruin this game. Similarly, the healthcare facilities beam torchlight all the time. I believe that many of them would rather deliver quality service, they are in position to do just that.”

    In his remark, the Executive Secretary of the scheme, Prof. Usman Yusuf pledged that he will ensure that NHIS does the right thing moving forward and serve the people better.

    “For a very long time, we have not being doing the right thing. I pledge as the Chief Executive of this agency, that I will do all I can to put the enrollee at the Centre rather than in the last position.”

    He also denied the allegation of investing the fund of the scheme in business without due authorization, saying no Penney of the fund was invested anywhere in the country or outside the country.

    Besides, he said the scheme has the right to invest its fund according to the law but it has not done that as the board has put a hold to the idea.

    This was also colloborated by the chairperson of the board.

    NHIS board also vowed to recover any money of the scheme that may be with the government, stressing that the money does not belong to government but the people.

    Read Also: ‘Only two per cent of Nigerians have enrolled for NHIS’

  • Osinbajo advocates compulsory health insurance scheme for citizens Insurance

    The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, on Wednesday advocated compulsory health insurance scheme for citizens to enable all to access quality and affordable health care services.

    He advocated this at the “Civic Innovation Lab: Launch-pad for social innovators’’ in Abuja.

    Osinbajo noted that the present National Health Insurance Scheme although useful, was unable to pull resources together to cater for the health needs of others not yet enrolled.

    He said that government was investing in education and health care and had supported states with N1.91 trillion.

    He, however, added that while such sector funding lay in the states only a functional and all-embracing national health insurance scheme could provide adequate health care for citizens.

    The Vice President also advocated that undergraduates should be exposed to internships in government administration to enable them to acquire the experience for future leadership roles.

    He also said it was difficult to find role models in governance but said there was the need for the nation to agree on a set of values which could direct the course of governance.

    He said that one thing the nation needed to get right was integrity as with integrity more than 50 per cent of the nation’s problems would have gone.

    According to him, the nation is endowed with enormous resources and creativity which could be harnessed for the country’s good with leadership that had integrity.

    The Vice President noted that people went into politics with the notion to use it to make money by stealing adding that by and large such objective affected everything, including political judgment.

    He stated that most of the problems in the country centered on corruption due to lack of integrity and called for change of attitude.

    “If 70 per cent of our resources went into where they were supposed we would not be where we are today,’’ he stated adding that no society could survive on the greed and theft of others.

    He said “integrity pays and is the only thing that works for progress’’.

    He stated that those who could be trusted were more easily open to having business deals with others adding that integrity was a business issue rather than a moral issue.

    “I think that many people understands that Nigerians are one of the most creative people in the world; many people know that we have one of the best minds but people are worried when it comes to integrity issues ,’’ he said.

    Osinbajo stated that the most difficult lesson he learnt since becoming the Vice President was that it was difficult to get things done in the our environment.

    “I think there is a huge gap in a stated objective and getting it done’’ and the reason for that is because we are not paid on timelines, efficiency or productivity in a positive sense.

    He noted that the people who work around him, being young people, had brought in more efficiency than others.

    Osinbajo admitted that youth employability was a major challenge but the problems had to do with the kind of training people got.

    According to him, many suffer the double jeopardy of the training being inadequate as well as advanced technology including the artificial intelligence that had taken away a lot of jobs.

    He described the scenario as complicating but added that the advantage the youth had was that technology could help much in unraveling the problem.

    He said that the government’s N-Power was basically to engage graduates without jobs and to train them in employability task skills.

    “The best type of investment we can make is to push people to that kind of training in spite of your academic qualification,’’ he said adding that in self-improvement a lot of collaboration was needed.

    He said there was the need to change the way of teaching in institutions to embrace creative reasoning, collaboration, the use of technology and others.

    He noted that there were few platforms for people to interact with government adding that the civic lab was an excellent example of bringing people with innovations that had social relevance to have link with the government.

    He said that government had interest in the Civic hub to also find out how to resolve problems in the system.

    He said that the administration recently organized the Aso Villa Demo Day as an innovation challenge for the youth adding that another one involving students across the country had begun.

    Osinbajo stated that besides, government would open innovation hubs in six Nigerian universities beginning with the University of Lagos, to enhance creativity in partnership with the private sector.

    He added that an innovation hub existed in Yola, Adamawa, aimed at solving the humanitarian challenges in the North East.

    Osinbajo advised the youth to focus on self-development and strong values noting that with that they could stem the mediocrity seen in government.

    He advised the youth to deemphasize tribe or religion as such things did not help to develop the country in any way noting that agreeing on certain values would offer mentorship to the youth.

    The Vice President said that effort should be made to educate the young people adding that it was also the highest investment the youth could make on others.