On Lagos’ health insurance scheme
Health insurance is just putting that practice that is already with us in a well structured manner. It is, therefore, in wanting to follow this honorable path of ensuring a healthy population, that the Lagos State Government in 2015 introduced the mandatory health insurance scheme in the state. Of course if the health insurance is fully implemented, it would change the entire picture of the health sector because it will address the core issues and people soliciting support to offset medical bill would be near to nothing.
The new Lagos State Health Scheme is a state-wide, mandatory and pre-paid health insurance scheme aimed at providing financial protection against catastrophic healthcare spending. However, it is important to note that there is no health insurance programme that covers all health conditions. The scheme will cover treatment of common adult and childhood ailments (like malaria, typhoid, measles as well as immunization), maternal and child services, preventive healthcare services, selected noncommunicable diseases and surgeries.
Before the law came onboard, Community Based Health Insurance Scheme (CBHIS) was test-run in three communities. The result of the pilot had shown that the scheme is doable and is a step in the right direction towards achieving Universal Health Coverage for the residents of Lagos State. It is on the strength of concerted groundwork, the government is convinced and now expediting action on full implementation of the scheme. This is even as the state is targeting an enrolment of at least 2.5 million residents in 2019 with a projection to reduce health issues by 10 per cent. Expectedly, government is presently doing a lot of publicity to communicate the scheme to the citizens.
The state government made the scheme mandatory because it doesn’t want to toe the line of the federal government’s National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) which was made optional. Countries that have successfully implemented health insurance scheme made it mandatory. Again, the health sector requires a lot of investment. But the government will set aside equity fund to cater for the poor and vulnerable. For residents already under NHIS, the arrangement is that the State would not force them to join the new scheme, but focus on the people who don’t have at all.
In sum, irrespective of financial class people belong to, health insurance scheme is a way to save for the raining days, as a citizen may not know when he or she may fall sick. It would also help to eliminate out-of-pocket payment for health, which is the way to go, as most developed countries started it many years ago. It is, however, incumbent on health providers to creatively plug all the loopholes that make or might make people averse to the scheme.
Razak Musbau, Lagos.