Yenagoa – The National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) on Thursday urged the Bayelsa government and other stakeholders to embrace the scheme, to enable it to provide affordable and qualitative healthcare for civil servants and their families.
Mr Raymond Ohonba, the NHIS State Co-ordinator, gave the advice during its Stakeholders’ Forum on Thursday in Yenagoa.
Ohonba, who decried the poor enrolment of people into the NHIS in the state, said that the stakeholders’ forum was organised to enlighten the public on the need to take advantage of the scheme.
He said that NHIS in the state was working hard to ensure that employers and employees of various organisations in Bayelsa were sensitised on the importance of the scheme.
“We want the state government to support our activities in Bayelsa, though we have written to them on the need for collaboration, but they have yet to respond.
“We learnt that they also have a state-owned health scheme but with collaboration with our activities in the state, we can achieve more quality healthcare delivery.
“We are calling on Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to continue to assist us in sensitisation and mass mobilization, to ensure adequate participation of employees to the scheme,” Ohonba said.
Mr Modu Spiff, Bayelsa Director of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), said the agency would partner with the NHIS on mass mobilisation, to improve health care delivery in the state.
“I once again commend the NHIS operation in the state and I promise that we will partner in the enlightenment of the people; I urge the NHIS to make the stakeholders forum an interactive platfform and a regular programme,” Spiff said.
Dr Njideka Njoku, a representative of Healthcare International, said the forum was also necessary for the proper educating of stakeholders in the state.
On the operation of the NHIS in the state, Njoku urged all those enrolled in the programme in the state to always contact their Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) on their challenges concerning the scheme. (NAN)
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