Chairman, Senate Committee on Health,Yahaya Oloriegbe, says Nigeria cannot achieve the universal health coverage without making the National Health Insurance Scheme compulsory for all and increasing coverage across the country.
Oloriegbe said this in Abuja Tuesday at the pre-event briefing for the 3rd Annual Summit of the Legislative Network for Universal Health Coverage (UHC) with the theme “Efficiency and Effectiveness in Nigeria Health Sector: The Role of Legislators in a Decentralised Democracy. He stressed the need to amend the NHIS Act.
According to him, the scheme is only attracting or capturing more of the formal sector workers.
“But from our side as parliamentarians, we are already following up on the amendment of the NHIS Act of 1991. It was amended the last time by the eight parliament, it was passed, but was not signed into law.”
He also said that provision had been made for cancer treatment funding in the 2020 budget so that poor Nigerians suffer from the disease could get treatment.
He said the summit would map out the role of lawmakers towards the implementation of Basic Health Care Provision Fund within the context of the National Health Act 2014.
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