By Olusola Aladejebi


Governments—federal, state and local—in Nigeria have disappointed people too many times that citizens rarely trust them that they would come through with stated programmes. It is said, ‘Once beaten, twice shy’. Nigerians have been beaten thousands of times, and are now chronically cynical. Who would blame us?


Nigerians have registered many times for National Identity card but with no cards. One can still recall the national Identity card programme under Olusegun Obasanjo. It was completely bungled. Very few people got the national Identity card. The few that were issued were abolished and a new scheme inaugurated. Under the new arrangement I registered 4 years ago. As at today my card is not ready. People who registered before me have not received their cards. The Federal Government through its electricity regulatory agency (NERC) gave November 2016 as deadline for electricity distribution companies to supply prepaid meters to all its customers. Till date, in many communities possession of prepaid meters are an exception rather than rule. In 2009 The Federal Road Safefy Commission threatened a total clampdown on riders of motorcycle without crash helmets. Almost 10 years after, look around you, how many of them use it? It is assumed that any programme of government won’t work as promised.


So when in 2016 the Oyo State government launched its health insurance scheme, I was sceptical. It appeared too good to be true. For those registered under the scheme, it is promises free treatment for children under 5 years, free antenatal and delivery for pregnant women. For other persons, registration per year begins with #7800 for the standard plan.


So around November 2017 we registered our little child (under 5 years) in the Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme (OYSHIS) for free at a participating private hospital. (Some private hospitals have been approved for the scheme). For several months, there was no notification of successful registration. I was not really disappointed. This is Nigeria. But in June 2018, I got an SMS notification of our subscription activation. In July our child became sick so we took her to the hospital where we had registered her for OYSHIS. My wife came home with drugs for our child without paying a kobo. Interesting. Later she had to be admitted. This hospital is a standard private hospital. Their services were top class; environment neat. So on the 3rd day when our child was to be discharged I made sure I was present to get our bill. I thought, if drugs and treatment were free, surely we would pay for admission. As my wife was receiving the final discharged instructions I was waiting for her to tell me how much we were to pay. She came back to tell me that we were now free to go. I couldn’t believe it. So as we were exiting I was still expecting someone to call us back. No one did.


Later on I went on the Oyo State Health Insurance Agency website to learn of the limits of the insurance. It turns out that all treatment our child got was still within the limit.


Everything of value that is gotten free has been paid for in some other way. There is no something for nothing anywhere. Even if it does not cost you personally, it is being paid for somehow. Being a practitioner of systems thinking I began to examine the whole OYSHIS architecture. The scheme can offer free treatment to under 5 children because of the various premiums paid by other participants. The scheme runs on the principle of collective burden sharing.


Two things immediately come to mind: The first is that for the scheme to be sustainable the premiums paid ‘cannot’ be misappropriated. If the participating private hospitals don’t get paid for their services rendered and the drugs dispensed, they will just quit. Secondly, the paying subscribers must be large enough to bear the cost for the care of pregnant women and children under 5.


The Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme is something that must be continued. All developed societies leverage on the advantage of the collective. For instance it is clearly much more economical and sensible for a people to set up a city wide water supply scheme than for everybody to dig wells and boreholes for water. It will cost much less for DISCOs to supply power than for people to have little generators here and there. However, the collective effort thrives on TRUST. People have trust in a system that continues to deliver. Otherwise people decide to go solo—even though this is less effective.


The current administration Abiola Ajimobi that initiated the health insurance scheme will end in May 2019. Whoever becomes governor next year must as matter of priority strengthen the scheme to capture even more people.


As impressive as the scheme is, awareness is still low. After I experienced that the scheme is actually working, some people I discussed with were not even aware it. I am wondering if this is deliberate on the part of the agency in order not to overburden the system. If it is, I can only hope that there are mechanisms in place to strategically increase capacity and that there is real-time feedback so that more people will be brought in. However, if it not, awareness needs to be increased so that the scheme can achieve its purpose. Their mission as stated on their site is ‘…ensuring universal health coverage and access to affordable and quality health care…’


The leaders of the people at every level should show commitment and integrity and thereby build trust so that widespread cynicism among the citizens can start to be cured. Cynicism built over decades cannot be cured by just 6 months of good work. No. The good work must continue.

[s]

hero2000:
By Olusola Aladejebi


Governments—federal, state and local—in Nigeria have disappointed people too many times that citizens rarely trust them that they would come through with stated programmes. It is said, ‘Once beaten, twice shy’. Nigerians have been beaten thousands of times, and are now chronically cynical. Who would blame us?


Nigerians have registered many times for National Identity card but with no cards. One can still recall the national Identity card programme under Olusegun Obasanjo. It was completely bungled. Very few people got the national Identity card. The few that were issued were abolished and a new scheme inaugurated. Under the new arrangement I registered 4 years ago. As at today my card is not ready. People who registered before me have not received their cards. The Federal Government through its electricity regulatory agency (NERC) gave November 2016 as deadline for electricity distribution companies to supply prepaid meters to all its customers. Till date, in many communities possession of prepaid meters are an exception rather than rule. In 2009 The Federal Road Safefy Commission threatened a total clampdown on riders of motorcycle without crash helmets. Almost 10 years after, look around you, how many of them use it? It is assumed that any programme of government won’t work as promised.


So when in 2016 the Oyo State government launched its health insurance scheme, I was sceptical. It appeared too good to be true. For those registered under the scheme, it is promises free treatment for children under 5 years, free antenatal and delivery for pregnant women. For other persons, registration per year begins with #7800 for the standard plan.


So around November 2017 we registered our little child (under 5 years) in the Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme (OYSHIS) for free at a participating private hospital. (Some private hospitals have been approved for the scheme). For several months, there was no notification of successful registration. I was not really disappointed. This is Nigeria. But in June 2018, I got an SMS notification of our subscription activation. In July our child became sick so we took her to the hospital where we had registered her for OYSHIS. My wife came home with drugs for our child without paying a kobo. Interesting. Later she had to be admitted. This hospital is a standard private hospital. Their services were top class; environment neat. So on the 3rd day when our child was to be discharged I made sure I was present to get our bill. I thought, if drugs and treatment were free, surely we would pay for admission. As my wife was receiving the final discharged instructions I was waiting for her to tell me how much we were to pay. She came back to tell me that we were now free to go. I couldn’t believe it. So as we were exiting I was still expecting someone to call us back. No one did.


Later on I went on the Oyo State Health Insurance Agency website to learn of the limits of the insurance. It turns out that all treatment our child got was still within the limit.


Everything of value that is gotten free has been paid for in some other way. There is no something for nothing anywhere. Even if it does not cost you personally, it is being paid for somehow. Being a practitioner of systems thinking I began to examine the whole OYSHIS architecture. The scheme can offer free treatment to under 5 children because of the various premiums paid by other participants. The scheme runs on the principle of collective burden sharing.


Two things immediately come to mind: The first is that for the scheme to be sustainable the premiums paid ‘cannot’ be misappropriated. If the participating private hospitals don’t get paid for their services rendered and the drugs dispensed, they will just quit. Secondly, the paying subscribers must be large enough to bear the cost for the care of pregnant women and children under 5.


The Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme is something that must be continued. All developed societies leverage on the advantage of the collective. For instance it is clearly much more economical and sensible for a people to set up a city wide water supply scheme than for everybody to dig wells and boreholes for water. It will cost much less for DISCOs to supply power than for people to have little generators here and there. However, the collective effort thrives on TRUST. People have trust in a system that continues to deliver. Otherwise people decide to go solo—even though this is less effective.


The current administration Abiola Ajimobi that initiated the health insurance scheme will end in May 2019. Whoever becomes governor next year must as matter of priority strengthen the scheme to capture even more people.


As impressive as the scheme is, awareness is still low. After I experienced that the scheme is actually working, some people I discussed with were not even aware it. I am wondering if this is deliberate on the part of the agency in order not to overburden the system. If it is, I can only hope that there are mechanisms in place to strategically increase capacity and that there is real-time feedback so that more people will be brought in. However, if it not, awareness needs to be increased so that the scheme can achieve its purpose. Their mission as stated on their site is ‘…ensuring universal health coverage and access to affordable and quality health care…’


The leaders of the people at every level should show commitment and integrity and thereby build trust so that widespread cynicism among the citizens can start to be cured. Cynicism built over decades cannot be cured by just 6 months of good work. No. The good work must continue.

[/s]

Absolute trash

APC is the worst thing to happen to Nigeria

hero2000:
By Olusola Aladejebi


Governments—federal, state and local—in Nigeria have disappointed people too many times that citizens rarely trust them that they would come through with stated programmes. It is said, ‘Once beaten, twice shy’. Nigerians have been beaten thousands of times, and are now chronically cynical. Who would blame us?


Nigerians have registered many times for National Identity card but with no cards. One can still recall the national Identity card programme under Olusegun Obasanjo. It was completely bungled. Very few people got the national Identity card. The few that were issued were abolished and a new scheme inaugurated. Under the new arrangement I registered 4 years ago. As at today my card is not ready. People who registered before me have not received their cards. The Federal Government through its electricity regulatory agency (NERC) gave November 2016 as deadline for electricity distribution companies to supply prepaid meters to all its customers. Till date, in many communities possession of prepaid meters are an exception rather than rule. In 2009 The Federal Road Safefy Commission threatened a total clampdown on riders of motorcycle without crash helmets. Almost 10 years after, look around you, how many of them use it? It is assumed that any programme of government won’t work as promised.


So when in 2016 the Oyo State government launched its health insurance scheme, I was sceptical. It appeared too good to be true. For those registered under the scheme, it is promises free treatment for children under 5 years, free antenatal and delivery for pregnant women. For other persons, registration per year begins with #7800 for the standard plan.


So around November 2017 we registered our little child (under 5 years) in the Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme (OYSHIS) for free at a participating private hospital. (Some private hospitals have been approved for the scheme). For several months, there was no notification of successful registration. I was not really disappointed. This is Nigeria. But in June 2018, I got an SMS notification of our subscription activation. In July our child became sick so we took her to the hospital where we had registered her for OYSHIS. My wife came home with drugs for our child without paying a kobo. Interesting. Later she had to be admitted. This hospital is a standard private hospital. Their services were top class; environment neat. So on the 3rd day when our child was to be discharged I made sure I was present to get our bill. I thought, if drugs and treatment were free, surely we would pay for admission. As my wife was receiving the final discharged instructions I was waiting for her to tell me how much we were to pay. She came back to tell me that we were now free to go. I couldn’t believe it. So as we were exiting I was still expecting someone to call us back. No one did.


Later on I went on the Oyo State Health Insurance Agency website to learn of the limits of the insurance. It turns out that all treatment our child got was still within the limit.


Everything of value that is gotten free has been paid for in some other way. There is no something for nothing anywhere. Even if it does not cost you personally, it is being paid for somehow. Being a practitioner of systems thinking I began to examine the whole OYSHIS architecture. The scheme can offer free treatment to under 5 children because of the various premiums paid by other participants. The scheme runs on the principle of collective burden sharing.


Two things immediately come to mind: The first is that for the scheme to be sustainable the premiums paid ‘cannot’ be misappropriated. If the participating private hospitals don’t get paid for their services rendered and the drugs dispensed, they will just quit. Secondly, the paying subscribers must be large enough to bear the cost for the care of pregnant women and children under 5.


The Oyo State Health Insurance Scheme is something that must be continued. All developed societies leverage on the advantage of the collective. For instance it is clearly much more economical and sensible for a people to set up a city wide water supply scheme than for everybody to dig wells and boreholes for water. It will cost much less for DISCOs to supply power than for people to have little generators here and there. However, the collective effort thrives on TRUST. People have trust in a system that continues to deliver. Otherwise people decide to go solo—even though this is less effective.


The current administration Abiola Ajimobi that initiated the health insurance scheme will end in May 2019. Whoever becomes governor next year must as matter of priority strengthen the scheme to capture even more people.


As impressive as the scheme is, awareness is still low. After I experienced that the scheme is actually working, some people I discussed with were not even aware it. I am wondering if this is deliberate on the part of the agency in order not to overburden the system. If it is, I can only hope that there are mechanisms in place to strategically increase capacity and that there is real-time feedback so that more people will be brought in. However, if it not, awareness needs to be increased so that the scheme can achieve its purpose. Their mission as stated on their site is ‘…ensuring universal health coverage and access to affordable and quality health care…’


The leaders of the people at every level should show commitment and integrity and thereby build trust so that widespread cynicism among the citizens can start to be cured. Cynicism built over decades cannot be cured by just 6 months of good work. No. The good work must continue.

Good Testimonial of a system that is working.

All it takes is for technocrats to have a listening ear with state functionaries and great things will get done. This is a state scheme and if it has worked this well, think of what will be possible in a privately run system.

My preferred HMO 004 has a waiting period of two weeks for capitation list to be sent to hospitals and Service providers. Thus
within two weeks of registering you can get coverage at over 500 hospitals.

Refer to my posts on this topic https://www.nairaland.com/4701669/value-health-insurance

Enjoy your read.