Olanrewaju Lawal, Birnin Kebbi
The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) accreditation team, led by Dr. Okoh Christopher have started inspection processes of the 100 Primary Health Centres, billed to be integrated into the scheme in Kebbi State.
The team, during the first accreditation exercise Planning meeting with the Staff of the Kebbi Contributory Healthcare Management Agency(KECHEMA) in Birnin Kebbi on Monday, explained the conditions that must be met before the Scheme, NHIS would be implemented in the state.
While speaking at the meeting, the team leader,Dr. Okoh Christopher, explained that part of the conditions mandated for any state was to have functional State Health Insurance Scheme Agency,take off grant among others.
“I want to to remind us that the NHIS is not only meant for formal sector, it is also meant for informal sector. One of the criteria to have NHIS is to have functional state NHIS agency with take off grant”.
Christopher who commended the Kebbi State government for enrolling into the Scheme, said the social health programme would benefits people of the state and rural dwellers when it’s fully take off.
In his remarks, the Kebbi State Commissioner for Health, Alhaji Jafar Muhammad, disclosed that about 100 Primary Health Centres across the state would be subjected to accreditation exercise by the NHIS.
Muhammad while speaking on benefits with newsmen, said,” the benefits is going to be enormous to the people of Kebbi state. That means, people of Kebbi State would be able to access the Scheme service when they didn’t have money at hands.
“But since they have contributed,they would be able to come to the hospitals with minimum of the money for them to be able to access the health service”.
The Executive Secretary of KECHEMA, Dr. Jafar Augie Mohammed who explained details of the Scheme enrollment, noted that apart from the small money required from individuals to access the Scheme ,health facilities would be upgraded, while Staff of the Agency in the state,at the Local and Wards level would be trained on the Scheme service delivery .
He expressed optimism that all of the Primary Health Centres that would be subjected to accreditation exercise by team of NHIS from Abuja will passed through the hurdles test