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  • 18.7m Nigerians under insurance cover, NHIA DG

    18.7m Nigerians under insurance cover, NHIA DG

    No fewer than 18.7 million Nigerians have been covered by health insurance as of this year’s second querter, the Nigerian Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) said yesterday.

    The agency said it has made significant strides in expanding health insurance coverage across the country.

    It’s Director-General, Dr. Kelechi Ohiri, dropped the hints in Abuja during the inaugural Quarterly Performance Dialogue between the Federal Government, 36 State Governments, and key health sector stakeholders.

    According to him, the 18.7 million Nigerians covered by health insurance, surpassed the target set for the period by an impressive 11 per cent.

    He said that this achievement highlighted the NHIA’s dedication to achieving universal health coverage (UHC).

    Ohiri said: “The authority’s vision is centered on bridging the gap in healthcare access for millions of Nigerians and enhancing the overall quality of care. Despite this progress, several challenges persist.”

    He said that one of the significant challenges identified was the uneven distribution of coverage, particularly the disparity between the formal and informal sectors.

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    To tackle these challenges, Ohiri said that the NHIA had outlined a strategic plan for the future.

    He mentioned that the authority aimed to leverage on data and technology to enhance service delivery and patient outcomes.

    He said that the NHIA was optimising operations and fostering citizen engagements in its commitment to improving healthcare access.

    “The authority has set an ambitious target to cover 20 million Nigerians by 2027, a goal that underscores its comprehensive vision for universal health coverage in the country,” he said.

  • NHIA: Fed Govt reviewing doctors’ fees

    NHIA: Fed Govt reviewing doctors’ fees

    The Federal Government is reviewing the capitation fees paid to healthcare providers under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

    Capitation fees are the payments or grants to a doctor or school, among others, determined by the number of patients, pupils, or customers that are served.

    This move addresses longstanding concerns from hospital proprietors involved in the scheme.

    A statement by the NHIS said the Director General of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr. Kelechi Ohiri, announced that the capitation fees have not been reviewed for many years.

    Ohiri noted that addressing the issue has become crucial for the healthcare sector.

    “It’s been a while since tariffs were reviewed. We initiated actuarial reviews in February to have a solid foundation for adjusting these tariffs,” he said.

    The goal of the reviews is to gather evidence and determine an affordable basic minimum package of services for patients to ensure consistent and predictable healthcare services at hospitals.

    Ohiri said significant support was being being provided to vulnerable groups to encourage their participation in the health insurance programme. The initiative is a key priority for the Federal Government, the NHIA boss said.

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    “The Vulnerable Group Fund acknowledges that while health insurance can be contributory, it can also be non-contributory, where the government pays for the poor and vulnerable,” he said.

    The fund, which is a part of the NHIA’s mandate, supports poor Nigerians, people with disabilities, internally displaced persons (IDPs), the elderly, and other vulnerable groups.

    The definition of vulnerability now includes women at risk of death during childbirth, a group predominantly found in rural areas.

    According to him, the NHIA is enhancing partnerships with state government-run health insurance programmes, which are crucial for boosting national enrolment.

    Ohiri praised state governments for their efforts at expanding health insurance.

    “Every state in Nigeria now has a state health insurance scheme, with Rivers State being the latest to join. Many states are also setting up Equity Funds to complement federal efforts,” he said.

    Despite the efforts, the NHIA boss said only about 16 million Nigerians or seven per cent of the population, are currently covered by health insurance, with the new NHIA Act aiming to increase the coverage.

    “With the Act making insurance mandatory, we now have a pathway to universal coverage. We aim to increase the coverage significantly from the current seven per cent,” Ohiri said.

    The NHIA boss stressed that improving health insurance coverage is a collective responsibility involving both public and private sectors.

    “We have a mixed insurance space with NHIA, state health insurance schemes, private health insurance agencies, HMOs, and administrators.

    “Achieving universal healthcare coverage requires joint efforts – from the federal and state governments, private sector, and civil society organisations (CSOs),” he added.

  • Firm gets full HMO accreditation from NHIA

    Firm gets full HMO accreditation from NHIA

    The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has granted full accreditation to ALLY Healthcare, a Health Maintenance Organisation (HMO) and subsidiary of the BAS Group.

    The Founder and CEO, BAS Group, Abdulateef Hussein said this in a statement on Thursday.

    Hussein said the accreditation demonstrated the dedication of the organisation providing high-quality healthcare services to its enrollees while maintaining the highest levels of professionalism and compliance.

    He said the high – quality healthcare services would start with enrollees from the North Central and expand to the rest of the country.

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    The statement said: “As a subsidiary of the BAS Group, ALLY Healthcare is part of an ecosystem dedicated to supporting individuals and businesses in achieving success in their everyday endeavours. By integrating healthcare solutions into the broader offerings of the BAS Group, we aim to provide comprehensive support to our customers, ensuring their well-being and prosperity.

    “Since our inception at BAS Group, we’ve transitioned from offering general and life insurance products from subsidiaries like BAS Insurance Brokers to aspiring to become renowned healthcare providers with Ally Healthcare known for excellence. Our journey is a true statement to success being possible with laser focus execution and the commitment of a loyal team taking steps to where they envision themselves.

    “Come join us as we mark this significant milestone, mirroring our successes in Insurance, Capital, Microfinance, and beyond. Our ambition for this year? To extend health insurance coverage to 10,000 individuals. If you are a SME employer, you have to prioritise your employees’ health. I mean, the numbers are not smiling from; 195 million Nigerians living and having no form of health insurance down a projected 10 percent annual increase in the cost healthcare.

    “That’s why the BAS Group is focused on developing a range of products that empower people to attain real success. We invest in insurance, financing, technology, cloud computing, and more, all with the goal of cultivating an environment that supports both personal and business advancement.”

    Also, the COO of BAS Group, Adnan Kayode said: “On the other hand you can tell we are intentional with the choices of business we undertake and invest in. We have embodied the mantra in our subconscious that we are building an ecosystem of product and service that brings success to SME and individuals.”

    He added: “Looking ahead, ALLY Healthcare remains committed to innovation and excellence in healthcare delivery. We are dedicated to leveraging technology and data-driven insights to enhance the accessibility, affordability, and quality of healthcare for all our members.

    “Our forecast for the future includes continued expansion of our network, introduction of new healthcare solutions, onboard more customers, with further investment in our people and infrastructure to better serve the evolving needs of our members of our community at large.”

  • Health insurance now compulsory, NHIA DG tells states

    Health insurance now compulsory, NHIA DG tells states

    The Director General of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Prof. Mohammed Sambo, has urged the agency’s state offices to ensure that no life in their domains is left uncovered under health insurance.

    Sambo, who spoke yesterday in Kaduna while receiving an Award of Excellence from the Kaduna State office of the authority, noted that with the 2022 NHIA Act 2022, health insurance has become mandatory on all Nigerians and legal residents in the country.

    The NHIA boss, who was represented by the agency’s acting Director of Special Duties, Sulaiman Ibrahim, said the authority had been well repositioned to achieve its statutory mandate of attaining the Universal Health Coverage, especially with the birth of the new NHIA Act 2022.

    He said the Act has introduced some landmark innovations, such as redefining the objects of the authority and streamlining its objects.

    “Accordingly, NHIA is to regulate, integrate, and promote health insurance in Nigeria. The Act has made health insurance mandatory for all Nigerians and legal residents, the establishment of the Vulnerable Group Fund to subsidise the cost of provision of health care services to the vulnerable persons in Nigeria, amongst other innovations that have changed the health insurance ecosystem. 

    “The authority recently unveiled the new operational guidelines that would explain and amplify the provisions of the new law.

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    “Therefore, I urge you to take advantage of the new health insurance landscape in order to take health insurance to the last man, woman, and the needy on the street,” Sambo said..

    “This event is remarkably important for its novelty and timing, in that it is the first time that a state chapter of the NHIA would spare time amid its numerous duties to look inward to appreciate and award its Chief Executive Officer, for providing selfless, purposeful and farsighted leadership to the suthority that had once been disarrayed by mismanagement and wanton disregard for law and order,” Sambo said.

    The Kaduna State Coordinator of the authority, Aminu Tanimu, announced that the award was organised to celebrate excellence, honour outstanding achievements and recognise individuals and organisations that have made exceptional contributions to the NHIA ecosystem.

    Other recipients of the award include the Chief Medical Director of Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Kaduna, Prof. Aishatu Armaya’u; Police Health Management Organisation (HMO), Giwa Specialist Hospital; Regenix HMO; Freedom Radio 92.9; Invicta FM 98.9; Hajia Ummulkhair Sada; and Alhaji Kabiru Umar.

  • NHIA Act: A landmark move towards universal health coverage

    NHIA Act: A landmark move towards universal health coverage

    • By Emmanuel Ononokpono

    One of Nigeria’s memorable Ministers of Health, Prof Eyitayo Lambo, was convinced that achieving universal health coverage (UHC) could only be through social health insurance mechanism. His vigorous pursuit of the groundbreaking Health Sector Reforms Agenda culminated in the commencement of coverage of Nigerians under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) as it then was in 2005. On June 6 of that year, federal civil servants began to access prepaid health care services in their preferred hospitals. Thus the foundation for UHC was laid.

     However, the NHIS legislation was fraught with certain difficulties, sufficient to hinder the development of an efficient health financing system. In the main, the law made health insurance voluntary. As early as 2005, efforts to amend that legislation began. Efforts finally came to fruition on May 19, 2022 when former President Muhammadu Buhari signed the NHIA Act into law, 17 years after commencement of coverage of Nigerians under the tireless watch of Prof. Mohammed Nasiru Sambo as Chief Executive Officer of NHIA. The NHIA Act is critically acclaimed as the most system-changing legislation in the health sector since Independence in 1960. The 60-section legislation makes health insurance mandatory for all citizens and legal residents.

     The combined effects of sections 3(b) and 14(1) give legal muscle to ensuring that every Nigerian accesses health care through the channel of health insurance. In addition, it integrates all forms of health insurance in a decentralised federal structure as Nigeria. In the aftermath of the enactment of the Act, Prof Sambo-led NHIA has left no stone unturned in breathing life to this landmark legislation. Sensitisation workshops with critical stakeholders including State Health Insurance Agencies (SSHIAs), Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) and Health Care Providers (HCPs) aimed at bringing understanding of their roles and responsibilities under the new dispensation have been conducted. The approval of the revised Operational Guidelines, the secondary law that puts flesh to the Act, was sought and received from the Federal Ministry of Health.

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     In addition to the committee that reviewed the Operational Guidelines, two others to chart a course for the implementation of the Act were set up: the committees on Mandatory Health Insurance and Innovative Financing. These panels, which drew membership from relevant agencies and organisations, have turned in their reports. The reports of these committees will provide basis for charting the course of Universal Health Coverage in the months ahead. Specifically, the committee on Mandatory Health Insurance was to proffer ways of giving effect to the mandatory component of the law while the other on Innovative Financing gave insight to ways and means of pooling resources for the Vulnerable Group Fund.

     Not a few Nigerians think that the mandatory component of the Act means that government will pay required premiums for everyone in the thinking of free healthcare. In all countries of the world where UHC has been achieved and social health insurance is in full operation, health care is paid for! Mandatory is not synonymous with free medical care. Every Nigerian is expected to make a prepaid regular contribution for his healthcare. For a fact, the United Kingdom government spent £160.4b on its National Health Service (NHS) – NHIA is Nigeria’s equivalent in 2022.  That fund was taken from that country’s general tax system.

     Deriving from the fact that health insurance is paid for, the question is, what happens to those who are unable to pay? Sections 25 and 26 establish the Vulnerable Group Fund (VGF) and itemise sources of funding to include: The Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), Special Intervention Fund, Health Insurance Levy and Investment by the Authority. At the signing of the Act, former President Buhari put the figure of potential beneficiaries of the VGF at 83m Nigerians. Another important aspect of the Act is section 13, which provides for the operation of State Health Insurance Agencies (SSHIAs) and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) health insurance agency. By implication and law, the task of expanding coverage to 200m Nigerians now rests with not only the NHIA but also State Social Health Insurance Agencies (SSHIAs) across the country.

    It is instructive to observe that section 2 hands NHIA the tripartite role of regulator, integrator and promoter of health insurance in Nigeria. Also worthy of note is section 34(2), which empowers NHIA to approve private health insurance offerings in the country. The net effect of this provision is the standardisation of health insurance services. In a few words, the NHIA Act holds promise of providing financial access to affordable and quality healthcare to all Nigerians and legal residents, making UHC a reality.

     •Ononokpono is head of Media and PR Unit at NHIA