Commission: 30,000 Pensioners To Receive Free Healthcare In Q1 2026

As Federal govt unveils PenCARE  | Beneficiaries to be selected from six geopolitical zones

No fewer than 30,000 retirees selected from the six geopolitical zones of the country are expected to benefit from the new free Pension Industry Healthcare Initiative (PenCARE).

The pilot stage of the initiative is scheduled to take off in the first quarter of 2026, even as it is expected to be co-funded by the National Pension Commission (PenCom) and Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) in the country.

The beneficiaries are existing pensioners under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) who are currently drawing monthly pension benefits.

Speaking at the 2025 Annual PenCom Media Retreat in Ikeja, Lagos, on Thursday, the Director-General of PenCom, Mrs Omolola Oloworaran, said the scheme is aimed at ensuring pensioners live a good life in retirement, remain fit and healthy, and enjoy longevity.

Stating that the living conditions of retirees are dear to the regulatory body and indeed the entire pension industry, she added that every initiative embarked upon by her administration is geared towards adding value to Retirement Savings Account (RSA) holders and retirees, one of which is the free health insurance scheme.

Similarly, while presenting a paper on the subject, the Head of the Compliance and Enhancement Department at PenCom, Ahmed Lawan, noted that while PenCom would financially support the initiative, PFAs would co-fund the project through deductions from their Profit After Tax (PAT).

He said the funds contributed by both parties would be used to procure health insurance packages from Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) in the names of the benefiting retirees.

Assuring that the health status of retirees is paramount to the pension industry, he said: “We want our retirees to live long, and with this package, they can take care of their ailments early enough before they weigh them down or become terminal.”

Earlier, the PenCom director-general disclosed that the recently launched Pension Revolution Summit 2.0 represents a major reform that would rewrite the history of the pension industry, following the earlier evolution of the new pension scheme in 2004.

In addition, she said one of the historic milestones is the approval of N758 billion by President Bola Tinubu’s administration to clear all outstanding pension liabilities. According to her, this development enabled PenCom and pension operators to clear all backlogs owed to Treasury-funded Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

As a result of this payment, she said there is now zero waiting time for the payment of pension benefits once a worker retires, thereby making life easier for pensioners.

Disclosing that the recently approved pension enhancement—specifically for retirees under the Programme Withdrawal (PW) window—has added over N2 billion to monthly pension payments, she added that the scheme is fulfilling its promise of putting smiles on the faces of pensioners.

Moreover, she noted that with the rebranding of the micro pension plan into the Personal Pension Plan (PPP), the process has been simplified to enable easier onboarding, unlike the cumbersome and rigid requirements that existed previously.

This time around, she said, what is mainly required is a National Identification Number (NIN) and some basic documentation, as enrolment under the package has been digitised.

To this end, she stated that the regulator, in partnership with operators, will train thousands of pension agents who will be saddled with the responsibility of deepening the PPP and promoting financial inclusion through pensions.

Disclosing that contributions through pension compliance enforcement increased from N150 billion in the second quarter of 2025 to N232 billion in the third quarter of the year, she promised that the Commission would continue to strengthen enforcement of the scheme.