Clement Nnachi 
Background
The Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency (EBSHIA) was established by law in 2018, to implement the state’s Health Insurance Scheme, provide easy and equitable access to quality health care services to all residents, without exposing them to financial risk.
EBSHIA has the mandate to enrol all residents of the state into the scheme. Since then the agency has rolled out programmes for different segments of the population.
The agency has also embarked on aggressive health insurance awareness campaigns and marketing to the informal sector, as a way to expand and increase enrolment in the state.
Medical care
A total of 582 registered civil servants in the state, identified with health challenges, were beneficiaries of the recent free medical/ surgical intervention of the agency. The interventions were in the areas of eye surgery, hernia operations, fibroids, and distribution of glasses among others.
Flagging-off the medical intervention, which was held at the Women Development Centre, Abakaliki, the state’s Head of Service (HOS), Dr (Mrs) Rita Mary Okoro, said that the medical interventions were in fulfilment of the state government’s mantra of ‘Charter of needs’.
According to her: “This programme is designed to provide comprehensive health services to civil servants without financial cost. I am quite impressed with the number of surgeries and medical outreach that have been performed so far.
“It is now clear that the assignment given to the Health Insurance Agency concerning enrolment of civil servants has been carried out successfully. “Civil servants are the beneficiaries of this programme, many of them with surgical cases and have been duly operated on.” Okoro urged civil servants to utilise the opportunity offered by the initiative and to equally ensure that their families benefit from it.
This is as she disclosed: “The Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency is committed to offering affordable health care services to the people of Ebonyi State in line with the Peoples’ Charter of Need mantra of the government.
“Governor Nwifuru is taking care of the health needs of every civil servant in the state; the beneficiaries have confirmed that no payment was made by them for the treatment.” On the sustainability of the medical outreach, Okoro assured that the evidence on ground was a testament that the programme has come to stay.
Executive secretary
The Executive Secretary of EBSHIA, Dr Divine Igwe, said that the flag-off involved specialized care for 500 registered cases including eye glasses, surgeries, fibroids and hernia surgeries. He said that the event marked another execution of Governor Nwifuru’s Charter of Needs agenda.
“In November 2023, Governor Nwifuru gave approval that all civil servants be enrolled in state health insurance scheme,’’ he disclosed, adding; “The total number of persons who needed intervention was 582, which included hernia surgeries (39), fibroids (16), eye operations (18), eye screening (278), and hepatitis B (1).
“Remember that all expenses, including investigations, medications, and services have been fully paid for by the government through EBSHIA. “Today, September 30, marks the flag-off of the Onwa healthcare medical and surgical outreach, made possible by the governor, who on November 7, 2023 approved a free health insurance for all civil servants.’’
Igwe restated that since the granting of the approval on April 29, 2024, civil servants and their families have accessed health services free of charge. “I congratulate the beneficiaries, I urge you to show appreciation to Governor Nwifuru for his unwavering support.
Ebonyi State stands out as the only state where the governor fully covers civil servants’ health insurance premiums,” he noted. In his remarks, the State Chairman of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ogugua Egwu, and his counterpart in the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Chidi Igboji, extolled the leadership style of the governor and his commitment to civil servants’ wellbeing in the state.
Beneficiaries speak
In an interview, a beneficiary, Mrs Egwu Ehia Ugwoba, who successfully underwent an eye surgery, commended the governor for the initiative, describing it as worthwhile.
She explained that she had been with the ailment for three years now, confessing that paucity of funds had prevented her from accessing Medicare all along.
According to her: “I had both my eyes operated on to remove cataracts. I was not able to offset the bill until this government intervention. I thank them so much. “Earlier hospitals I visited charged me N700, 000, I had no such money to pay.
Now the surgery has been successfully done free of charge.” Another beneficiary, Mr Nwenyi Matthew, a civil servant, who hails from Umuhuali Ishielu Local Government Area of the state, disclosed that he had a hernia surgery. “I had a hernia. I had no money to take care of myself before Governor Nwifuru came to my rescue,” he said.
Partnership
A number of public and private hospitals in the state have partnered with the government in offering medical services to the sick individuals.
They include: Little Seed Hospital and Maternity located at Nnorum Street, Abakaliki; Hope Restored Foundation Specialist, Mile 50 Layout Abakaliki; Expacon Specialist Hospital at Goody Ogbaga Street, Abakaliki; Caring Cross Specialist Hospital; and Dan Medics Specialist Hospital.
