As part of its renewed drive to improve health care delivery, the Cross River State government is to enroll 1 million residents.
Disclosing this in a media briefing in Calabar on Tuesday, the State Commissioner for Health, Dr Betta Edu, said the residents will be enrolled under the Ayade Care health project of the state which is aimed at providing affordable and an accessible health-care for the people.
Betta said the government is committed to revolutionising and reenergising the sector as well as restoring the lost glory of the state.
She said: “Our general vision is to ensure we provide universal Health Coverage for all irrespective of class, religion, and social status for all the people within Cross River State.
“In 2020, we hope to enroll one million people who will pay one thousand monthly and twelve thousand naira annually to access quality health care”, she said.
She added that to make this possible, the government has concluded plans to get the three tertiary hospitals in the state up and running.
She further added that from 2020, the government will conduct a medical audit anytime a patient dies in any medical facility in the state.
Henceforth, she said any death must be registered in the dashboard of all health centres in the state and where this is not done, the epidemiologist will loose his/her job, stressing that people will not be allowed to kill and walk away from it.
According to her, the focal agenda of the government in the sector is reducing catastrophic health expenses under the Ayade Care, delivery of quality health care and also partnering charitable organisation to ensure a healthier Cross River.