Cross River
State in south-south Nigeria says it is developing operational guidelines for
implementation of its Health Insurance Scheme meant for residents of the state.
Already
Governor Ben Ayade has signed into law the provision for the take-off of the
Health Insurance Scheme.
Commissioner
for Health, Dr. Inyang Asibong told a meeting of Health Insurance stakeholders
in Abuja that the scheme when inaugurated, will provide cover to all residents
for diseases treatable in the state.
“We didn’t
just introduce a law, we brought together all that we need to make it work. The
law provides a platform for collaboration of stakeholders in the healthcare
financing as well as identifying their roles and responsibilities in the
governance structure to avoid conflict of functions,” she told the gathering,”
she said.
The Scheme
which is mandatory for all residents of the state to enrol, will require each
person to pay a premium of N1,000.
“Apart from
the N1,000 premium by beneficiaries, the state government is also committing 1%
of its consolidated revenue to finance the scheme,” she said.
The
Commissioner added that the state government has commenced construction of
referral General Hospitals in various locations across the state to handle
cases beyond the level of primary health care centres.
The State is
also working towards increasing manpower in the health sector preparatory to
the take-off of the Scheme, scheduled for 1st October, 2017.
According to
her, the search for Executive Secretary of the agency has been advertised for a
worthy individual of any nationality to apply, but such person must have
expertise in health insurance.
“We are
confident that the law will work in the state, the governor is one of the
signatory of the scheme’s bank account and he has a personal interest having it
succeed, what else do we need? she queried.’’
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@ HRI West Africa
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Clinical Governance Implementation
Publisher: Health and
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8 Amaku Street Housing
Estate, Calabar
Cross River State, Nigeria
Cross River State, Nigeria
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Joseph Ana has a cumulative continuous practice experience of over 40-years in
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Health Expert, General and Urological Surgeon, Health Policy Expert and
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