Yusuf, who declared “there’s a new Sheriff in town who cares’’, added that all stakeholders operating under the Scheme will henceforth be held accountable for their performance, including the handling of funds. The Executive Secretary therefore charged the HMOs wake up from their lethargy in the new order, and ensure that enrollees not only receive quality service at every point of need, but are also accorded respect and dignity.

He advised them to put aside all inefficiency, corruption and impunity, as maximum sanction will be applied in all cases of breach of moral and financial trust against any industry player in the future. According to Yusuf, the time has come for the enrollees to reap the benefits of their insurance contributions rather than being treated shabbily at hospitals. “The enrollee has no one to complain to. Most of you guys are in Lagos. When they call you in distress, you are rude, and drop the call on them.  Yet you collect their money. It is their money. Not your money. Not government money. They give you easy money. Yet when they go to the hospitals, they are treated like trash. It’s got to change, people” Prof. Yusuf said.

He said that of all agencies in the health sector, the NHIS has the most potential to change the lives of the people and the HMOs must assist in making this a reality, through the assurance of better services. “This is my prayer, I appeal to you all to make meaningful and lasting difference in the lives of the people. We will do this. I want to see action. I want to be able to hold HMOs responsible and say what have you done for the enrollees this quarter, not what has the enrollee done for you’’.

The Executive Secretary accused the HMOs of feeding fat from the contributions of the enrollees without rendering the required service, adding “enough is enough. There’s a new sheriff in town. And we will deploy the strength that accrues to us from the law, and the goodwill of the people and Mr. President to satisfy the enrollees”. He also emphasized that the major goal of the NHIS is universal health coverage, urging all stakeholders to realign their focus and operations towards that national objective.

On the issue of equitable distribution of enrollees among the HMOs, Prof. Yusuf advised all HMOs to become ‘more innovative and nimble’, and embark on aggressive marketing, as the era of the allocation of enrollees by NHIS or government was gone. He also cautioned politicians who believe that the NHIS is an ATM from where they could access free funds, saying “it is no longer business as usual”. He added that at the rate the NHIS and the HMOs are going, achieving universal health coverage in Nigeria would be difficult as only about three per cent of the country’s population are at the moment covered.

Interestingly, some of the Health Maintenance Organizations present at the meeting agreed with the submissions of the Executive Secretary. They however appealed for an even playing field, where all HMOs have the opportunity to compete favourably.  The Managing Director of the United Healthcare Ltd, who is also the President of Health Managed Care Association of Nigeria (HMCAN), Dr. Kolawole Owoka, said that the positions of the new Executive Secretary were steps in the right direction.

He however appealed to state governments to embrace health insurance for their people, if universal health coverage were to be attained in the country in good time.

Source:MWN