• Hausa Edition
  • Podcast
  • Conferences
  • LeVogue Magazine
  • Business News
  • Print Advert Rates
  • Online Advert Rates
  • Contact Us
Sunday, June 29, 2025
Leadership Newspapers
Read in Hausa
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Health
  • Entertainment
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Football
  • Others
    • LeVogue Magazine
    • Conferences
    • National Economy
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Health
  • Entertainment
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Football
  • Others
    • LeVogue Magazine
    • Conferences
    • National Economy
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
Leadership Newspapers
No Result
View All Result

Still On Health Insurance Coverage

by Leadership News
1 year ago
in Editorial
Share on WhatsAppShare on FacebookShare on XTelegram

Recently, the Nigerian Senate called on the federal government to expand the National Health Insurance Scheme  coverage to include patients with chronic kidney diseases.

Advertisement

According to them, the ailment constitute about 40 per cent of referrals to tertiary hospitals in Nigeria and was a significant contributor to daily hospital admissions.

In making this appeal, the lawmakers drew attention to the cost of dialysis sessions in Nigeria which range from N20,000 to N50,000 per session, whereas kidney transplant, an alternative to dialysis, is financially unattainable for many, with the cost running into several millions not adding the challenge of getting a donor with its own cost implication.

In our opinion, it is worrisome that the National Health Insurance in Nigeria provides limited coverage for chronic kidney disease patients, highlighting the need for expanded insurance coverage to support treatment.

It is from that prospective that we consider the call by the Senate as not only timely but commendable in view of the high incidences of non communicable diseases (NCD) and the attendant  mortality rate which is high indeed.

RELATED

Yelwata Attack: Survivors Count Losses, Seek Federal Gov’t’s Assistance To Return Home

Yelwata IDPs: A Call For Action

11 hours ago
REA Expands NEP With AfDB $250m Facility

Quickening Energy Access

1 day ago

It will be stating the obvious to note that most Nigerians cannot afford the cost intensive treatment required for these non communicable diseases. In the circumstance, many sufferers have had to resort to crow funding to sponsor treatment for their ailments in this 21st century where world governments are declaring universal coverage for health.

A 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey indicated that about 97 per cent of Nigerians lack any form of health insurance and majority (70 percent) of Nigerians make out-of-pocket payments for health.

Universal health coverage (UHC), embedded within the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as all individuals having access to required health services of sufficient quality without suffering financial hardship.

Sadly, in our view, effective strategies for financing healthcare, which are critical to achieving this goal, remain a challenge in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), especially in its most populous nation, Nigeria.

It is unarguable, in our opinion, that access to quality healthcare services without individuals suffering financial hardship remains a challenge in the country.

As a result, large percentage of individuals’ access to essential health services depends on direct out-of-pocket payments (OOPs), pushing millions of people further into the poverty bracket each year.

One of the consequences of this development  is that millions of people do not seek quality treatment for their health issues, exacerbating the problem and increasing the burden of preventable deaths in Nigeria.

Like every other law in Nigeria guiding establishment of  MDAs, we are of the view that the law guiding the activities of the health care providers needs to be reviewed to tally with modern international standard.

The federal government signed into law the new National Health Insurance Act (NHIA) 2022 on 19 May 2022, which replaces the National Health Insurance Scheme Act of 1999, which failed to enroll more than 10 per cent of the population.

The NHIA seeks to promote, regulate and integrate health insurance schemes and aims to secure mandatory health insurance for every Nigerian and legal resident, and establishes a fund for the vulnerable groups, which will provide ‘subsidy’ for health insurance coverage for vulnerable persons and payment of health insurance premiums for indigents.

For years, successive governments  have spoken of the need for nationwide health coverage as a public service, but the advance towards that goal has been slow and stunted.

While the private Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) tend to have more comprehensive service coverage, the NHIS mainly caters to priority diseases and limited diagnostic tests, excluding surgery.

Besides the discrimination that goes on in some facilities, a hospital is more likely to trust that a private HMO would be more responsive in paying for the services that their enrollees have accessed rather than the NHIS considering the bureaucracy they have to go through there.

As a newspaper, we are not ignorant of the cost intensive nature of some of these diseases and it shouldn’t be out of place to review and adjust the capitation upward to reflect the times in order to provide comprehensive coverage of illnesses.

In our view, poor public funding of the health sector, population increase that outpaces economic growth and fiscal crisis have combined to guarantee poor health indicators and out-of-pocket health expenditure of 70.52 percent, being the highest in sub-Saharan Africa.

In addition, the Basic Health Care Provision Fund needs better utilisation and transparency even as we dedicate more funds for service delivery to benefit the poorest of the poor.

In the meantime, we urge the federal government and other stakeholders to launch extensive public education campaigns to raise awareness about kidney disease prevention, risks, and available treatments and other non communicable diseases as well.


We’ve got the edge. Get real-time reports, breaking scoops, and exclusive angles delivered straight to your phone. Don’t settle for stale news. Join LEADERSHIP NEWS on WhatsApp for 24/7 updates →

Join Our WhatsApp Channel

BREAKING NEWS: Nigerians can now earn US Dollars from the comfort of their homes with Ultra-Premium domains, acquire them for as low as $1700 and profit as much as $25,000. Click here to learn how you can earn US Dollars consistently.


Tags: Health Insurance Coverage
SendShareTweetShare
Previous Post

Stakeholders Canvass Alternative Energy Solutions To Address Transportation Challenges

Next Post

The States And The Blackout Nation

Leadership News

Leadership News

You May Like

Yelwata Attack: Survivors Count Losses, Seek Federal Gov’t’s Assistance To Return Home
Editorial

Yelwata IDPs: A Call For Action

2025/06/29
REA Expands NEP With AfDB $250m Facility
Editorial

Quickening Energy Access

2025/06/28
2023 Not A Good Year For MSMEs, Says NASME
Editorial

World MSME Day: Reviving Nigeria’s Growth Engine

2025/06/27
West Africa IMT Summit To Explore Opportunities In Global Trade War
Editorial

The Plight Of Industrial Centres

2025/06/26
National Assembly, Two Years After
Editorial

National Assembly, Two Years After

2025/06/25
‘Everyone Is Scared’, Iranians Head To Armenia To Escape Conflict With Israel
Editorial

As The Middle East Boils Again

2025/06/24
Leadership Conference advertisement

LATEST

Delta South APC Leaders, Stakeholders Endorse Tinubu, Oborevwori For Second Term

Ex-Footballer, Businessman, Others Arrested Over Illict Drugs

Saudi Arabia Okays Burial Of Late Dantata In Madina On Monday 

Sultan Tasks Political Leaders On Motto Of National Institute

Kanu, Ikpeba To Attend NNL Super 8 Opener

WAFCON 2024: CAF Celebrates Former Super Falcons Captain, Ebi

70% Nigerians Without Insurance Cover — NCRIB 

Ojude Oba: Brands, Celebs Find New Spotlight

Mádé Kuti Drops New Single ‘Wait And See’

I Haven’t Seen My Daughter In A While – Skales

© 2025 Leadership Media Group - All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Health
  • Entertainment
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
  • Columns
  • Football
  • Others
    • LeVogue Magazine
    • Conferences
    • National Economy
  • Contact Us

© 2025 Leadership Media Group - All Rights Reserved.