Years after the launch of the National Health Insurance Scheme, to improve access to good health, a medical expert, Dr Ben Anyene has said inadequate funding remained a big challenge to the actualisation of the scheme.

Speaking at this year’s general meeting and scientific conference of the Health Care Providers Association of Nigeria (HCPAN) in Lagos, Dr Anyene said the situation where government’s allocation to the health sector was far below 15 per cent of the national budget and workers were yet to start making their contributions, had contributed to inadequate flow of funds for the smooth running of the scheme.

Dr Anyene, who noted that the Federal government continuous payment of the employer contributions for its employees was a major step for health insurance to expand in 2005, argued that if workers were yet to start making contributions, it was unclear how funds from those in the informal sector can be collected.

According to him, a situation where health insurance systems seek to convert out of pocket payments to prepayment schemes and then ends up as a free one operating only with government contributions will not lead to the desired goal of having adequate funds.

Dr Anyene who declared that lack of inadequate medical personnel in clinics, primary care centres, general and tertiary hospitals was limiting the effectiveness of health insurance in the country, stated that other problems faced by the scheme  included poor access to health facilities accredited by the scheme.

According to him, “most of the health facilities are concentrated in urban areas far removed from rural areas where majority of the population live and where the need is more urgent,” thus making self medication to be on the increase.

Dr Anyene said irrespective of successes recorded by the scheme, there was the need to correct the paucity of health facilities in the rural areas by ensuring a better collaboration with the private sector so that the objectives of the National Health Insurance Scheme can be achieved.

He said in order to ensure that all Nigerians are covered by the scheme a reality, all state governments need to get their workers covered by the scheme, people in the informal sector and rural areas should be co-opted into the scheme, workers should start making their contributions, dichotomies between the tiers of health facilities bridged for effective referral structures and employment of well trained medical personnel.

Dr. Anyene urged the speedy endorsement and promulgation of the National Health Bill and all the provisions it contains with regards to the National Health Insurance Scheme.

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