ABUJA – In its efforts to increase health insurance penetration in Nigeria, the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) plans to launch National Mobile Health Insurance Programme (NMHIP) for Nigerians.
Dr Femi Thomas, the Executive Secretary, NHIS, made the disclosure on Wednesday in Abuja while briefing newsmen during the first anniversary media score card of his tenure.
He described the NMHIP as a `novel concept’ aimed at providing subscribers of mobile network operators a platform for easy health access.
He said the platform would enable subscribers register, and select Health Maintenance Organisation (HMO) and choose payment options from their mobile phones.
To implement the programme, Thomas said the management of NHIS had engaged mobile technology and business aggregator, Salt and Einstein Ltd to interface with stakeholders to manage the process.
He said that the pilot run of the programme was launched in Lagos on July 21on the platform of MTN.
He added that other network operators including Glo, Etisalat and Airtel had made preparations for roll out.
The Executive Secretary said that NHIS also plans to implement a new initiative to be known as Public Primary Social Health Insurance Programme (PPPSHIP).
“The initiative is designed to provide cover for 24 million pupils of public primary schools nationwide,’’ he said, adding that 20 states had made provision for the programmed in their 2015 budget.
Thomas said that the scheme was negotiating with the management of the National Youth Service Corps to roll out a social health insurance programme for graduates undergoing national service.
He said that during the year in review, the scheme had completed the first ever reaccreditation of Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs)
“Of the 61 HMOs, 38 were reaccredited while 15 new HMOs were exempted, as they were newly registered and due for reaccreditation,’’ he said. (NAN)