By Polycarp Onwubiko
Anambra State
health insurance agency (ASHIA) should please take a fresh look at the extant
rule whereby a patient on treatment on subsidized drugs would not be entitled
to another drug subsidy within a month. In public policy, rules inherent in the
policy more often than not need feedback from the people affected by the policy
ostensibly to satisfy the essence of the policy for the welfare of the people.
It does not
make sense whereby ASHIA would refuse to approve additional drugs in the course
of the treatment of the same ailment of the patience until one month elapsed
for another approval for the same ailment. The implication of the ill-advised
rule is that the patience while the drug he is taking has not cured the ailment
and the medical doctor prescribes further drugs within the month, the patience
has to purchase the prescribed drugs out of his pocket while his monthly salary
is being deducted.
This
apparently unreasonable if not irrational rule defeats the core mandate of the
health policy whereby the subscribers have placed hope that his ailments would
be taken care of by the health policy. Going by the statistics and probability,
one can say that less than 50 percent of the subscribers go to hospital and
need drugs subscription from ASHIA.
If this is
doubted, let the agency at the end of the year publish the number of
subscribers, the monthly deductions and the cost of drugs subscribed by the
Agency. This is transparency and accountability in practice so that there will
be a review of the rules guiding the disbursement of the deductions from the
subscribers.
There is a
case of an eye patience who had the eyedrop worth of N2,000.00 which ASHIA
asked him to pay 10 percent of the amount while the Agency paid the remaining
N1,800.00.
Then within
the same month the eye problem has continued and the medical doctor prescribed
another eyedrop costing N5,000.00 (five thousand Naira) but to the chagrin of
the patience, ASHIA refused to pay for the eyedrop on the excuse that one month
has not elapsed according to its rule.
In other
words, the patience who can not afford N5,000 for the eyedrop can have his eye
problem got worse or might go blind until one month when the almighty ASHIA
will approve the payment minus 10 percent charge. This is not what president
Olusegun Obasanjo had in my when he borrowed the healthcare delivery policy
from South Africa.
The Anambra
State Hon Commissioner for Health should review and abolish the gross
irresponsible rules guiding ASHIA for the benefits of the poor masses who are
dying because of inability to afford the ever escalating cost of drugs and
medicaments. Government policies ought to be subject to review as a result of
complaints and feedback. That is what is obtained in the civilized countries of
the world.
One thing
should be very clear in the lawful assignment of the agency, and that is the
fact that the Agency is NOT meant for Revenue Generation for the State
Government. It is simply to help the poor people in government's efforts in
healthcare delivery. There is no reason why the drugs needed by patients even
surgical operation and eye problem with eye glasses should not be paid by
ASHIA. At the end of the year, if the fund collected is below the deductions
and subscriptions by private people, the state government should reimburse the
agency because healthcare delivery is at the core of government basic amenities
and responsibility to the people especially the poor and vulnerable members of
the society.
Government
should strive to provide free medical services to the people and happily,
Governor Soludo is doing his best in that regard but his eyes should be beamed
at the transparency and accountability in the running of ASHIA.
Ray Ekpu's Critical Words On Marble Calling Tinubu To Be
Conscious Of History
"I have said it before and I am ready to repeat it one million times that no Nigerian leader will be able to solve the problem of insecurity that we face today without state police.
"This
country is too large for a single police system whose operational commander is
based in Abuja. Under Buhari, 400 persons were identified as sponsors of
terrorism. We ask president Tinubu to revisit the matter and get them to face the
law.
"The
(APC) Committee on Restructuring headed by Nasir El Rufai then Governor of
Kaduna State came out with a Report that stated that people wanted State
Police. Why should one man stop it by ignoring the decision of people who voted
for him? What sort of democracy is that?
"That is
what Buhari did. I hope that Tinubu does not walk along that path because of
the figure of the killings and kidnappings in the last eight months of his
administration which is alarming".------DAILY SUN, JANUARY 6 2024.
Polycarp
Onwubiko, Media Commentator
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