Director-General, National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Dr Kelechi Ohiri, says inmates in Nigerian correctional facilities will soon benefit from health insurance coverage to enhance healthcare access for vulnerable groups.
Ohiri, disclosed this during the quarterly media conference organised by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) on Thursday in Abuja.
He said the approval was granted by the Ministerial Oversight Committee (MOC) to enable the NHIA, in collaboration with the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS), provide insurance coverage for inmates as a vulnerable population.
“As at yesterday, the MOC granted permission and approval that, in partnership with the Nigerian Correctional Service, inmates now have access to insurance coverage.
“This is so that as a population that is also vulnerable and at risk, their services are covered,” he said.
The NHIA boss said the initiative was part of efforts to build a resilient and sustainable healthcare financing system that would reduce dependence on donor funding.
“As the world is changing, we have to build a system that is resilient and also sustainable.
“Insurance offers an opportunity to ensure that through the appropriate benefit package and the financing, a lot of these programmes are sustainable.
“Also, that they are not dependent on which donor wants to fund this, or which donor wants to leave the country,” he added.
Ohiri explained that the collaboration with the NCoS followed discussions initiated several months ago after the Controller-General of the service raised concerns about healthcare access for inmates.
He noted that the discussions between the two organisations led to the approval by the MOC to enhance financial access to healthcare services for inmates.
“Immediately, we will start with first doing an accreditation and review and assessment of all the facilities within the prison service that provide care to inmates, and see whether it meets prison quality and accreditation standards,” he said.
“Secondly, we will ensure that everyone who is eligible for enrolment has a National Identity Number (NIN), which is the policy of NHIA.
“To make sure that when we release numbers, these numbers actually attach to someone who has been validated,” he said.
The NHIA chief executive further said inmates would be assigned to appropriate healthcare facilities for primary care and referrals where necessary.
He explained that inmates already covered under state health insurance schemes would be excluded to avoid duplication.
Ohiri said the NHIA would provide quarterly updates to the MOC on the progress of the programme.
“Between now and the next MOC meeting, we will have updates on how far along we are in the programme, but we are starting immediately to do the accreditation and then the enrollment of the inmates,” he added.
On Vesicovaginal Fistula (VVF), he said the organisation was working with 19 facilities equipped with trained personnel to perform corrective surgeries, adding that more than 90,000 women across the country had so far been treated.