Osun Residents Urged to Embrace Health Insurance

Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo

The Executive Secretary of the Osun Social Health Insurance Scheme, Dr Adeniyi Oginni has called on residents of the state to key into the scheme for effective and affordable medical services.

Oginni made the plea while fielding questions from journalists in Osogbo, the capital of Osun State recently.

He explained that the scheme had in the recent time helped a lot of people especially the vulnerable persons in accessing affordable and quality healthcare services at a minimal cost.

“Since the scheme is aimed at providing equal opportunity for the poor and the rich, there is the need for citizens to take advantage so as not to be left out.”

Giving the breakdown of the enrollment of the people into the scheme, Oginni said no fewer than 167,000 have been enrolled, adding that out of this total figure, 127,187 are from the vulnerable population.

He said: “We have enrolled about 167,000. 127,187 are from the vulnerable population which the government of the state has given money for. In the last year’s budget, they gave us 50 per cent of the budgeted amount to take care of the healthcare need of the vulnerable.

“We have 127,187 individuals in the single vulnerability list of Osun State. From there, we are doing validation to ensure that only those who are confirmed vulnerable can get it.

“We have validated 120,000 and then in the civil service, we already have the list of 17,260 that have been sent to us whose data have been validated and we are in the process of producing Identity cards for all of these people. Service delivery has already commenced particularly for the vulnerable.

“Go to LAUTECH and ask for Ramota Adetunji. She is an indigent, very poor person who because of N1000 ran into a burning house and she got her hands burnt. She has since then been receiving treatment under the health insurance scheme at LAUTECH Teaching Hospital.

“The woman that just finished her ceasarean session with the scheme is receiving treatment. She is a registered member of the formal sector and she is receiving treatment.

“Also, members of the informal sector, LAUTECH staff and other persons who have already received their cards under OHIS have gone to the facilities to receive treatment.

“So for now, all of these are in place and I am glad to also let you know 1.5 per cent of basic salary of those in the formal sector worker is being deducted, with the government is adding three per cent as the employer’s contribution to the premium of the workers.

“However, we are still having challenges with local governments paying up their own three per cent for their workers. Also, note that the government has a two per cent contributory revenue budgeted in the 2019 as equity grants.

“The state government has released 50 percent of that to us and that is what we are using to ensure that we give care to everybody, but the local government has neither released their budgeted two per cent equity fund nor the three per cent on behalf of their staff

“When we are talking about support, you are more or less talking about buying, and it is for their own good. It will interest you that the Aleki of Ileki on December 26, 2019 bought premium for 10 people in his own community.

“He paid N120, 066 per annum and they will receive the entire benefit package. You would have been told that the Deputy Governor, Osun State, Benedict Alabi is paying for 300 people that would be receiving treatment in Ikire. Aside from that, there are individuals, about 65 of them, who have bought personal premium to participate in the scheme.

“We have sponsors from both individuals and political leaders. For the religious leaders, we have done sensitisation visit to them, but we have not really followed up to find out their own commitment,” he said.

According to him, one of the innovative ways of local religious sensitisation was for the government to get to those places and let them know the need to be their brother’s keeper and to pay money for those people who are indigent, adding that that was what Jesus Christ and Mohammed preach.

“The family of six would pay N57,600. We started in January last year and it was supported by UNICEF to organise an advocacy meeting for a paradigm shift from free health service schemes which is contributory and that was well attended by all the stake holders.

“We have engaged third party administrators, including health management organisations, and non-health management organisations who are involved in enrollment of the people and marketing of our skill.

“These HMOs will also be involved in the management of claims, publicity marketing, and enrollment of the citizen into the scheme,” he added.