Rivers health insurance scheme targets one million subscribers

The Rivers State Government has said that it intends to enroll at least one million of its citizens to the State’s contributory health insurance scheme.

Vetty Agala, Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Rivers State Contributory Health Protection Programme (RIVCHPP), said the aim was to ensure that the less privileged and those in rural communities get into the health net.

Agala, while on a radio programme in Port Harcourt, said the State’s contributory health protection programme was established to deliver affordable healthcare services to the people of the State.

She said, “Currently, coverage in Rivers State is about 500-something thousand, not only credited to the RIVCHPP. When we look at universal health coverage, what we are interested in is everybody being covered.

“And so we have the NHIS; we have some HMOs. At the end of the quarter, every time, we put together everyone that is on any form of health insurance, and that’s the Rivers State figure to which RIVCHPP contributes.

“Our target is to reach one million people. There is a law, that’s why His Excellency, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, can implement it, and that means that, in 2030, 2040, or 2050, the Rivers State Contributory Health Protection Programme has come to stay.

“So, the issue of continuity is not a problem. This is a programme that is sustainable and is at the centre of healthcare implementation in the country and by extension in the State.”

Agala said the Agency had increased the sensitization drive to involve communities and stakeholders, adding that the purpose was to ensure that everyone in rural communities was enrolled into the scheme.

“The drive is to get back into the communities. The essence is to bring our community leaders and religious leaders to a table to say, ‘This is what the Government of Siminalayi Fubara is doing for Rivers people. You need to know, and if you have the interest of your people at heart, then everybody in your community needs to be part of the health insurance scheme.’

“Also, we needed the community people and influencers to be part of the accountability framework. We need to look at what is happening at the facilities. Are the people already enrolled getting value for their enrollment? And what can you do about it? So you need to look in. As Ward Development Committee Chairman, you are a signatory to the account of the Primary Health Centre. So you need to look in,” she said.

Agala also called on those living in rural communities in the State to get enrolled and take advantage of the services provided by RIVCHPP.

She said, “What you want to do is come to the facility because that’s where you’ll access care. Come there; when you are registered, you know the way to the place.

“Our services are three-tiered. When you register in the primary health care centre, there is only so much they can do. They have a mandate, they have a standing order. There are a lot of things that they cannot do.

“So there is a referral system that helps you to move from the primary health care to the secondary facilities. And if the secondary facilities cannot provide the care you need, you are moved on to the tertiary facility or the teaching hospital. And that has been happening over time.

“We have both private and government facilities that are providing care for us. A lot of our paying clients receive care in private facilities because that’s where they think they are more comfortable. We have a lot that also receive care in primary health centres and whenever they have any challenge, they are referred to the secondary facilities.”