As recent as 2012 researchers estimated that 80% of healthcare expenditure was made by the private health sector in comparison to 20% spent within the public health sector. When we combine the growing prevalence of private healthcare providers to our soaring population with a very high birth rate of 5.4 per woman, it becomes increasingly clear that Nigeria has an opportunity to revisit the model for healthcare financing or get in serious trouble with unaffordability of healthcare in a decade to come.

While subsidized public healthcare continues, it would become more problematic a model if the government predictably becomes more cash strapped. This in addition with soaring cost of medical resources caused by inflation could cause a sharp decline in quality of health service provision in both private and public care.

Back in 2004, the President Olusegun Obasanjo administration did well to set up the National Health Insurance Scheme, which today serves about 5 percent of the Nigerian population. Much of the modest progress made by the scheme has been to enable employers cover employees and up to six dependents for family subscriptions that ranges from N100, 000 - N1, 500, 000 for coverage running into several millions of naira. While individual premiums currently start around N20, 000 - N35, 000 with coverage starting at N800, 000 and above per annum.

Unfortunately, apart from B2B buyers of insurance, by employers who are more or less required to cover employees, there has been lower adoption by individuals in B2C market who are not covered by employers or any support group. Instead, what we have is people with ongoing medical activity approaching insurance for coverage. This in turn increases risk for the market and a lackluster desire to sell insurance premiums outside of city centers where formal jobs are more prevalent.

However, any health insurance model seeking to serve only city people in employment has failed Nigerians.
There's need to pull tens of millions of Nigerians into the health insurance scheme mandatorily within the next decade. This would go a long way for a more sustainable health financing program which would cause a host of other benefits I would list below.

Nigeria would equally be joining a list of even wealthier nations which currently hold mandatory health insurance policy; USA (Obamacare), France, Switzerland, Oman, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Dubai (UAE)

BENEFITS OF A NATIONAL MANDATORY HEALTH INSURANCE POLICY


Eradication Of Out Of Pocket Pay For Healthcare Services.
According to PwC, 75% of healthcare funding in 2016 was through out-of-pocket, 15% through government spending, 2% through insurance and 8% from outside the country, and according to the world bank 100 million people are pushed into poverty every year because of healthcare spending.
Nigeria should look to phase most of out of pocket pay in place of insurance funding. The Era where "down payment" is requested must be brought to an end.

Increased Private Investment In Healthcare Infrastructure Across Nigeria
One of the biggest benefit of mandatory insurance would be massive private infrastructure spending in healthcare. This would happen as healthcare service providers can now situate, example top quality hospitals in rural communities without being threatened by the income levels of that community so far most people in such community are covered by premiums much of which the hospital can execute for in partnerhip with the insurance provider.

Reduction In Self Medication Emanating From Fear Of High Cost Hospital Care
As much as 60 - 90% of Nigerians self medicate partly due to the high cost associated with seeking professional care. This would expectedly reduce if an effective consumer insurance program is instituted. It is expected that the availability of a financing program would encourage Nigerians to go through the right process in taking good care of health responsibly.

Lower Cost Of Insurance Premiums
Adding millions of people to the insurance pool should cause insurance to become more affordable, yet sustainable. It is also important that the NHIS reviews carefully the number of insurers that exist as careless proliferation of insurers would cause more problems for the scheme.
It is estimated that it is possible to get insurance premium to a minimum of N10, 000 with a corresponding N500, 000 worth of coverage in year 2021.

Better Targeted Intervention For Both Federal And State Governments
Of course, not all segments of the Nigerian population would be able to uptake insurance. Intervention programs can identify such communities that are severely economically disadvantaged and offer them direct subsidized healthcare. Such programs can be lifted as economic indices within those communities improve.


Improved Healthcare Services Would Reduce Health Tourism
With improved health services due to sustainability insurance could create, it is expected that the need for travel tourism would drastically reduce just as health infrastructure improves.


Better Retention Of Healthcare Personnel
Nigeria currently loses much of her health personnel due to our internationally uncompetitive pay grade, which is a fraction of what is offered in developed nations causing enmasse emigration of very needed healthcare workers.


This article was written by Ifelola Olaleye, a co-founder, CEO of Cydern Technologies LLC and the MedicBird Teleresponse Command Center.



https://davidolaleye./2020/12/06/nigeria-benefits-of-a-mandatory-health-insurance-scheme/


Lalasticlala codetemplar

Nigerians with their "if it's not broken, don't fix it" will see buying and renewal of insurance plans as a total waste of money. Sad truth is most Nigerians can't afford insurance and some of those that can see it as a waste of money