Residents of Anambra State, particularly those in rural communities, have been urged to stop spending money meant for survival on their health needs.
They are rather called upon to embrace health insurance to reduce the financial burden of medical treatment and avoid preventable health expenses.
The Secretary of the Community Empowerment Network (COMEN) in Anambra State, Albert Chinwuko, made the call at St. Peter’s Catholic Parish, Urum, in Awka North Local Government Area, during a health awareness outreach.
The outreach was organised under the Strengthening Public Accountability for Results and Knowledge (SPARK 2) project, being implemented in Anambra State by the Justice, Development and Peace Commission (JDPC) Nnewi, Social and Integral Development Centre (SIDEC), Civil Rights Concern (CRC) and COMEN.
Chinwuko explained that health insurance provides financial protection by allowing beneficiaries to access healthcare without bearing the full cost of treatment.
He said many families could avoid severe financial pressure from medical emergencies by enrolling in health insurance schemes before the need arises.
Chinwuko illustrated the benefits of health insurance with the experience of his family, saying his son’s wife delivered twins with a total hospital bill of ₦280,000, while the family paid only ₦25,000 because she was covered by health insurance.
“My son’s wife gave birth to twins. The total hospital bill was ₦280,000, but we paid only ₦25,000. You can see how much the health insurance scheme helped our family,” he said.
He also recounted the case of a woman who required emergency surgery after being referred to a private hospital in the early hours of the morning.
According to him, the operation cost about ₦380,000, but the woman did not pay for the surgery because she was covered by health insurance.
“The only money the family spent was about ₦80,000 for drugs they purchased,” he added.
Chinwuko described health insurance as an important social protection mechanism, particularly for low-income households that may find it difficult to raise large sums of money during medical emergencies.
He urged residents to take advantage of available health insurance schemes instead of waiting until they or their family members require expensive treatment.
The COMEN State Secretary also stressed the importance of obtaining the National Identification Number (NIN), which he described as an important requirement for accessing government services and social programmes.
“If you don’t have a NIN, you won’t benefit from many government programmes. NIN is now compulsory for everyone, and we are urging all residents to register.
“It is an important gateway to accessing healthcare and other public services,” he said.
Chinwuko added that residents who had not obtained their NIN could seek assistance at primary healthcare centres. “Without NIN, you cannot enrol for health insurance. If you go to your primary health centre, they will help you to get your NIN,” he said.
The COMEN Chairman in Awka North Local Government Area urged residents to support government efforts to improve primary healthcare facilities in their communities.
He also encouraged residents to make use of the services available at the facilities, particularly those benefiting from the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF).
Chinwuko said the SPARK 2 intervention was designed to improve maternal and child healthcare, stressing that residents could only benefit from improved services when they patronised their local health centres.
“But you can only enjoy the improved services when you patronise the health centres.
“Therefore, we are urging you not to abandon the health centres in this community. We must work with government to better the conditions of those facilities,” he said.
He assured parishioners that COMEN and its partners were available to assist interested residents with information and guidance on health insurance enrollment.
