Abia Undertakes Health Insurance Policy to Cover Sickle Cell Warriors
Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia
People living with the sickle cell disease(SCD) in Abia State are now to enjoy health insurance coverage in order to ease the financial burden of coping with the health challenges of the disease.
Wife of the Abia Governor, Mrs. Priscilla Chidinma Otti announced the state-funded health insurance policy for the SCD warriors during the sickle cell disease awareness creation day in Umuahia.
In addition, she also announced to the cheering members of the Sickle Cell Survivors Forum, that her office would be providing monthly stipends to the SCD Warriors to take care of some basic needs.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, Abia had chosen to hold the awareness creation day in October, a month after the event was celebrated worldwide on September 24 with the theme, ‘Hope through progress: advancing sickle cell care globally’.
Mrs. Otti empathised with people having sickle cell, saying that they were made to live with a congenital disease which was never their own fault, adding that the health insurance coverage is a demonstration of her commitment to stand by them in their agonies.
“To all sickle cell warriors, you are not alone,” Mrs. Otti said, adding, “We are here to share in your triumphs against sickle cell disease. I need you to know that you are very special people”.
The Abia Governor’s wife who is now fondly called the Mother of Abia because of her profound sympathy and care for the vulnerable groups, lauded parents of SCD Warriors for giving them the needed care.
She equally commended other caregivers, including teachers, doctors, nurses, counselors and religious leaders that make sacrifices “in the lives of these special people in our homes and society”.
The Abia First Lady congratulated the SCD Warriors, who turned out in their numbers for the event, encouraging them wih words of comfort, saying that they deserved it “because, against all odds, you have triumphed”.
She regretted that the chain of SCD has remained unbroken due to the inability of people to make the right decision in the choice of life partner before marriage.
“This underscores the importance of sickle cell awareness creation. We are gathered here today for this reason to create awareness among our people,” Mrs. Otti aaid.
She, therefore, enjoined “all to heed the clarion call and make informed health choices that help prevent the transmission of sickle cell disease and the misery associated with its complications”.
By making the right choices of marrying spouses with compatible genotype, the Abia Governor’s wife, said that the birth of a baby would become a real bundle of joy instead of turning to agony associated with diagnosed sicke cell disease.
“It is quite risky to get married without checking both your genotype and that of your spouse,” she warned, adding, “I must emphasize to all of us and especially our youths, the importance of knowing your blood genotype”.
Speakers at the event, who are all health professionals harped on the dangers of defying the non-compatibility of genotypes by couples entering into marital life.
The Abia Commissioner for Health, Professor Enoch Ogbonnaya Uche stressed that sickle disease is “completely preventable” if only people would adhere to medical advice and don’t allow emotion to guide them in choice of life partner.
In her remarks, the Permanent Secretary in the Health Ministry, Dr Ifeyinwa Uma Kalu, drew from her personal experience of growing up with two siblings with SCD, advised against marriage involving non-compatible couples.
She pointedly stated that she wouldn’t like any woman “to go through what my mother went through” in giving care to children, who were diagnosed with sickle cell disease
