PenCare Alone Can’t Save Us, Say Pensioners As Economic Hardship Bites Harder

For many Nigerian pensioners, retirement has not brought the rest and security they expected after years of service. Instead, rising healthcare costs, inadequate pensions, delays in accessing benefits and poor coordination among service providers have left many retirees struggling to meet their basic needs.

Although the National Pension Commission (PenCom) recently raised the eligibility ceiling for its PenCare healthcare initiative from N70,000 to N150,000 monthly pension, labour leaders and pension advocates say the intervention is not enough to address the wider welfare crisis confronting pensioners.

They want the Federal Government and state governments to establish a comprehensive social protection system that will cover not only healthcare but also income security and other welfare needs of senior citizens.

PenCare was initially restricted to retirees receiving monthly pensions of up to N70,000. Stakeholders criticised the limit as too narrow, particularly at a time when inflation and rising medical costs have eroded the purchasing power of pensioners.

In response to the economic hardship facing older workers, PenCom raised the ceiling to N150,000, bringing more low- and middle-income pensioners within the potential coverage of the programme.

The commission presented the adjustment as an expansion of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) healthcare initiative. The programme operates alongside, but outside, the core mandate of specialised health agencies such as the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).

For pensioners, however, the increase has provided only limited hope. While some retirees welcome the possibility of receiving help with medical care, many say their challenges extend beyond access to treatment.

They must contend with small monthly pensions, rising food prices, increasing medical bills and difficulties in navigating the institutions responsible for their welfare.

Speaking with LEADERSHIP, former Acting National President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Promise Adewusi, described the increase in the PenCare eligibility ceiling as a welcome development but insisted that the initiative should not be mistaken for a complete solution to the problems confronting pensioners.

“The raising of the ceiling from N70,000 to cover pensioners earning up to N150,000, of this corporate social responsibility initiative is a significant welcome development and should be so acknowledged,” he said.

Adewusi said the prevailing economic environment had made the pensions received by many retirees almost worthless, especially those who retired in the early years of the Contributory Pension Scheme.

“The very harsh prevailing economic ecosystem has made nonsense of the paltry sums those who retired in the early years of the contributory pensions scheme receive monthly. Naturally, the healthcare needs of the elderly cost more and can hardly be accommodated within the pittance they receive as monthly pension,” he said.

Although the Federal Government had taken steps to improve pensions under the scheme by adding N32,000 across the board, Adewusi said the adjustment had not lifted the average pensioner out of poverty.

He said, “Granted that the present federal government has taken steps to improve pensions under the scheme by adding N32,000 across the board, this still leaves the average pensioner in abject poverty.”

The former SSANU general secretary said PenCare could provide temporary relief for retirees within its coverage if it was properly managed. He, however, warned that the programme’s long-term sustainability would depend on strong political will and effective coordination.

Adewusi also urged PenCom and Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) to prevent PenCare beneficiaries from facing the same difficulties associated with some aspects of the health insurance system.

He specifically warned against delays in payments to healthcare providers, saying such delays could affect the quality of care available to elderly pensioners.

“It is also necessary to learn from the negative side of the Health Insurance Scheme where HMOs treat subscribers as second-rate patients because they do not pay cash, as the operators complain of undue delays in receiving payments from the relevant agency,” he said.

“These elderly pensioners should not be allowed to be pushed around between HMOs and the PenCare coordinating agency.”

For Adewusi, healthcare access should ordinarily remain the responsibility of specialised institutions such as the NHIA, rather than being handled as a CSR initiative or pilot project by a financial regulator.

He said PenCom must ensure that its intervention did not conflict with the statutory responsibilities of agencies established to manage national healthcare access.

He nevertheless acknowledged the importance of PenCare, saying that proper implementation and coordination could provide much-needed relief for pensioners earning within the covered income bracket.

The need for better coordination is also being raised by pensioners who have attempted to participate in the programme.

Mr Afolabi Oye, a pensioner on the Lagos State Government payroll, blamed PenCom and its accredited bodies for what he described as low participation among eligible retirees.

He said many pensioners had complied with the registration requirements and submitted their records but had not received any response.

“Most pensioners in Lagos State public service complied but the low participation should be on the desk of PenCom and its accredited bodies. I believe the bottlenecks is from PenCom with the accredited units. Most of us complying filed our records, but no response from PenCom,” Oye said.

Beyond the administrative delays, he said many retirees and civil servants were not even aware that PenCare existed.

“Personally speaking, most civil servants and early retirees are not aware that the PenCare programmes is in existence. How can pensioners shun this kind of provision that is meant for our benefits? It is because they are not aware of existence of this,” he said.

Oye said some pensioners might also be doubtful of the programme because healthcare was not part of PenCom’s core mandate. However, he said the fact that PenCare was being offered as part of the commission’s CSR programme should not prevent eligible retirees from benefiting from it.

“Although some may be skeptical about it since it is not core mandate of PenCom to go into healthcare sector, but since they are offering it as part of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), I don’t see way some may be doubtful of it,” he said.

Another respondent, Mrs Habibat, said the initiative was designed to benefit pensioners but noted that inadequate information could be keeping many eligible retirees away.

“The move is for our good, most of us within Lagos State Government played our roles. I think others who are yet to do so are either not interested in it or are not well informed, which I think PenCom can do through more enlightenment campaigns,” she said.

Her comments point to a central difficulty facing the programme: even where a welfare intervention exists, pensioners may not benefit if they are unaware of it, unable to complete the process or left without feedback after submitting their details.

For labour leader Comrade Victor Oriola, the answer lies in treating pensioners as senior citizens deserving of a comprehensive social security safety net, rather than relying mainly on a healthcare intervention.

He said the economic crisis had made it necessary for governments at all levels to provide broader support for retirees.

“It’s definitely not right. If anything, they should be treated as senior citizens,” Oriola said.

“With the economic crisis staring everyone in the face now, I think the onus is on governments at all levels to provide a social security safety net,” he added.

Oriola said the economic crisis was placing an increasing burden on pensioners and urged the government to support them rather than introduce measures that could create further difficulties.

“The economic crisis is biting harder. The pensioners deserve our support, not adding to their burden,” he said.

The concerns raised by labour leaders and pensioners reflect the limits of an intervention focused mainly on medical care. For retirees whose monthly income has been eroded by inflation, healthcare support may reduce one burden but leave others untouched.

They still need reliable pension payments, prompt settlement of accrued rights, accessible health services, effective communication and protection from bureaucratic delays. They also need a system that connects PFAs, Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs), healthcare providers and government agencies without forcing elderly beneficiaries to move from one institution to another in search of assistance.

Adewusi identified systemic delays, unpaid accrued rights and weak coordination among PFAs, HMOs and healthcare providers as some of the major challenges confronting pensioners.

He said these problems must be addressed if PenCare is to achieve its intended purpose.

The labour leaders therefore called for PenCare to be complemented by broader social protection measures covering the healthcare, income and welfare needs of retirees.

For pensioners already struggling to survive on inadequate monthly payments, the demand is straightforward: PenCare may offer relief, but it cannot, on its own, secure their retirement years.