Oswald Agwu
The Ebonyi State Government has undertaken to pay the full annual health insurance premium for all civil servants in the State to enable them enroll and begin accessing free medical care from providers.
The State Governor, Francis Nwifuru, announced this during a Health Insurance Summit on Tuesday.
The summit was organised by the Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency.
The event was held at the Ecumenical Centre, Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital.
Recall that the Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency was established by a law in 2018 to implement the state health insurance scheme aimed at providing easy and equitable access to quality healthcare services to the people devoid of financial burden and risk.
Consequently, in addition to the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund, which the state joined in 2019, the health insurance scheme was launched in June 2021 by former Governor David Umahi, targeting to begin with the formal sector, the civil servants.
However, unresolved issues between Labour and Government concerning premium deduction from workers salaries stalled the scheme for the formal sector till the present administration came into power.
Meanwhile, enrollment has continued to progress for the informal sector through collaborative efforts with partners.
Governor Nwifuru at the Summit not only assumed responsibility for total premium payment for civil servants in the formal sector, but also committed to voting at least N200 million every year to support enrollees in the informal sector.
The moves were to encourage massive and widespread enrollment into the scheme by Ebonyi State residents across all sectors.
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Nwifuru announced: “On behalf of the Ebonyi State government, I think it is wise that we also take the responsibility of paying for the Civil Servants for the health insurance scheme.
“You said it is 5% of their salary annually.
“So the Head of Service and the Accountant General will work it out and we will start from January to pay for the civil servants in the State.
“For the informal sector, which I know is very difficult, we will complement your efforts and see what we can do.
“You said they are to pay N12,000 per annum.
“So for the informal sector, what we have to do is to listen to the local government area chairmen to know what they have been able to put in place and sit down with them to know what we are going to do.
“But definitely, the government of Ebonyi per annum will be making available at least N200 million to augment the premium for the informal sector.”
The Governor solicited the active involvement and collaboration of all stakeholders, policy makers, healthcare providers, companies, employers and all citizens of the state to ensure the ultimate success of the scheme.
Nwifuru added: “This summit is a catalyst for a positive change, and together we can create a more equitable and accessible healthcare system.”
Presenting a report on EBSHIA, the Executive Secretary, Dr. Divine Igwe, stated that the Agency has currently enrolled 50,847 vulnerable persons into the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund in the State, the statistics he noted was less than 5 percent of the total population of the State.
Igwe applauded the commitments of Governor Nwifuru at ensuring better healthcare benefits to Ebonyi people, including his recent recruitment of 195 health workers to rejig the health sector, and the approval of the State counterpart funding for enrollment of an additional 11,500 enrollees in the Ebonyi health insurance scheme, among others.
Speaking to newsmen, he called on Ebonyi residents to take advantage of the scheme and the positive disposition of the present administration to better their healthcare needs amidst the present financial hardship.
Igwe emphasised: “The vulnerability index of the State and the country in general is increasing as a result of the fuel subsidy removal.
“Many people are entering more below the poverty line, and spending more money for health bills will drive more families and homes deeper into poverty.
“Is it not better to simply pay a premium of N12,000 per annum and access free medical care anywhere you want, everywhere you want and at any time you want for the whole year?
“We have been in proper negotiation with the Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress and other affiliate unions, and all of them are happy to join the scheme.
“They only made one request that there should be an increase in their salaries, and you can see that our amiable Governor in this programme today has undertaken to be paying for them.
“The initial arrangement was that the government pays 3.5 percent out of the 5 percent, while workers pay 1.5 percent.
“Looking at that, the State government today has taken up the whole chunk of the money they are supposed to pay, and that makes it more attractive and easier for them to enroll.”
Earlier in an opening remark, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Moses Ekuma, described health insurance as a safety net, a shield against the unforeseen situation of life, and a surest means of ensuring access to quality and affordable healthcare services.
Ekuma expressed optimism that the summit would offer all stakeholders widened insight and enhanced collaboration for better outcomes for all Ebonyi residents.
Goodwill messages were received from the State Coordinator, USAID-Health Workforce Management, Dr. Ibiam Azu Agwu, who is also the Summit Planning Committee Chairman; USAID-Integrated Health Programme; World Health Organisation; and Ebonyi State Coordinator of the National Health Insurance Agency, Chukwuemeka Ogbu, among other partners.
Testimonies were received from other States’ Insurance Agencies.