Edo State Government has directed the State Health Insurance Commission to commence the registration of all journalists in the State into the State Health Insurance Scheme (EDO-HIS).
The government said the policy would cover primary and secondary health care.
Crusoe Osagie, the Special Adviser on Media Projects to the governor, made the disclosure during the inauguration of the newly elected executive members of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Edo State Council.
Crusoe said registered journalists would under the scheme be eligible to access health care at both public and private hospitals in the state.
“A card would be issued to individual journalists at the point of registration, and this card also covers for certain members of the journalist family.
“With the health insurance card, journalists can walk into hospitals and get their treatment almost free”,he said.
He, however, dismissed the insinuations that the demolished over 100 years old Central hospital buildings in Benin City had been earmarked for a motor or amusement park.
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He added that the essence of building a hospital is to give people access to health care.
According to him, the facility is no longer much of a hospital because most of the structures have been decayed.
“As a government, we don’t think it’s wise to keep a derelict infrastructure for sentiment so that people will not be angry”, he added.
The governor’s media aide also disclosed that the state government had concluded plans to extend the Ossiomo power plant to the secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists.
Earlier, Festus Alenkhe, state chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), commended the governor for the gestures noting that the health insurance scheme will help in improving the health status of media practitioners in the state.
Alenkhe, also added that the Ossiomo power plant will solve the epileptic power supply in the secretariat.
He, however, called on the state government to reintroduce the ministerial press briefing by commissioners of various ministry as well as inspection of government ongoing construction projects across state.
All members of the former executives were re-elected for a second term tenure of three years.
The re-elected executives include, Nefishetu Yakubu (chairman), Gabriel Enogholase (vice chairman), Osaigbovo Iguobaro (secretary) and Patrick Ahanor (assistant secretary).
Others are: “Idris Umar Momoh (treasurer), Barnabas Uzosike (financial secretary) and Francis Onoiribholo (auditor).
