Adamawa, PharmAccess partner on new insurance scheme

The Adamawa State government and PharmAccess have launched a new insurance scheme as part of efforts to tackle poverty and improve well-being of resident.

The health insurance scheme, recently launched in Yola, makes it mandatory for all citizens to participate including the very poor whose premium would be paid for by the State government.

In line with this, the State has set aside N600 million as capitalisation of the health insurance fund in the 2019 budget and also allocated one per cent of its Consolidated Revenue Fund to pay the premiums of those that cannot pay.

The journey towards the epoch-making event began over a year ago with the signing of a contract between the State government and PharmAccess organisation in January 2018.

PharmAccess was contracted to lead the technical development process for the State health insurance scheme based on their expertise and experience in supporting other States and governments to establish the scheme.

The State had also gone further to request for the commissioning of a State Poverty Identification exercise to adequately determine household eligibility for state-sponsored subsidies, which was also provided by the PharmAccess Foundation.

The Adamawa State World Health Organisation (WHO) Coordinator, Iyobosa Igbinovia, in his goodwill message, pledged that the organisation would continue to support the State to achieve all it has set out to achieve in the health sector.

The Country Director of PharmAccess, Njide Ndili, in her goodwill message on behalf of the PharmAccess Foundation, stated how delighted she was at the launch of the Health Insurance Scheme as this was one of the surest ways of achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and reaching the poorest of the poor of the society as studies have shown.

Ndili further expressed her appreciation for the support and cooperation that PharmAccess has enjoyed in the State while providing the technical assistance for the establishment of the scheme.

She solicited for more support, stating that “the journey has begun with great strides and there is still some distance to cover to get to the final destination of providing quality and affordable healthcare for all residents of the State.”

The Director of Advocacy and Communications of PharmAccess, Dr. Olamide Okulaja, expressed optimism that the implementation of the health insurance scheme would ensure that all residents of the State, irrespective of status, receive quality and affordable healthcare when they need it.

The former State Commissioner of Health, Dr. Fatima Atiku Abubakar, said though a Health Insurance Scheme was established in 2011; it went into limbo and had to be revived in line with the present administration’s quest to provide quality health services for all citizens in the State.

She expressed her joy and belief that after the launch, the residents will begin to enjoy the benefits of the scheme such as maternal and child care services, emergency care services.

The immediate past governor, Jibrilla Bindow, said the scheme was the first of its kind in the State and was designed to take healthcare system to the next level.

Bindow performed the unveiling of the official logo of the Adamawa State Health Insurance Scheme while his then deputy, Engr. Babale, inaugurated the Board Membership of the Health Insurance Scheme.