90% Of Nigerians Not On Health Insurance – Minister

Coordinating minister of health and social welfare, Prof. Mohammed Ali Pate, has said only about 10 percent of Nigerians benefit from health insurance coverage in the country.

The minister disclosed this yesterday at the official launch of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) Operational Guidelines in Abuja.

He said it was not well with the health sector even though a lot of progress had been made, while identifying the high out-of-pocket expenditure in the country as one of the areas that needs urgent attention.

“There has been some progress in the health sector but we all know that all is not yet well in the health sector despite the progress that we have made. One of those areas that is not well is the high out-of-pocket expenditure that Nigerians experience to access health. In fact, many people have been pushed into poverty because of the situation,” Pate said.

The minister, however, said that the NHIA guideline was an important turning point where health insurance can be mandatory.

He said the guideline is to provide direction so that as a country, when the federal government and states contribute, with the provision of the Basic Healthcare Provision Funds (BHCPF), it will enable the expansion of affordability of healthcare for the population, especially the most vulnerable.

“As we implement this guideline, we want to see more Nigerians being covered,” he said.

“In the last 40 to 50 years, Nigeria has been in the process of developing a guideline. We have less than 10 percent coverage now, we sre expect higher rate of coverage in the next few years and with the BHCPF, there is a portion of it that is allocated to the vulnerable group and we will make sure it gets to them, complementary to what we are also going to be investing in the Primary Healthcare arena.

The director-general of NHIA, Prof. Mohammed Sambo, said everything that has been incorporated in the Act has been expanded in the guidelines as it clearly states the roles and responsibilities of all the actors.

On the issue of the vulnerable group fund, Sambo said two things that can help the country in attaining Universal Health Coverage (UHC), are making health insurance mandatory and provision for the coverage of the vulnerable group. “These are in the law and they have been expatiate in the guidelines,” he said.