A total of 10,000 pregnant women and children are to benefit from the Ekiti State Health Insurance Scheme (SHIS), as Gov. Kayode Fayemi launched its take-off on Friday in Ado Ekiti.
The governor said that the scheme was designed toward ensuring quality healthcare delivery for the vulnerable citizens, under the Universal Health Coverage planned to give succour to the poor and needy.
He said that “the government had prepared grounds that would prevent untimely death of citizens, on account of inability to pay for health services.
“We are here to prepare for quality health delivery for our people, though we don’t pray to fall sick. This scheme will ensure efficient, effective and timely treatment, with no financial burden attached.
“The scheme was initiated under our maternal healthcare delivery in 2010 and the objective is to guarantee universal healthcare coverage with no financial burden for our citizens.
“We are also sure that the SHIS will guarantee continued access to quality healthcare for all and prevent untimely death on account of poverty.
“With SHIS in Ekiti, nobody will be turned away from hospital for not holding money. We are starting with pregnant women and children under five years, other groups will be incorporated as they register.”
According to him, the state government renovated 16 primary healthcare facilities across the state to kickstart the scheme, so as to reduce the burden of going several kilometres to access treatment.
“With SHIS, our people will not go bankrupt or die suddenly due to the lack of finance to seek effective and quality treatment for any ailment,” Fayemi assured.
On the COVID-19 pandemic, Fayemi said “we have worked hard in the area of curtailing the COVID-19 pandemic
“We have mobile molecular laboratories to carry out tests in all our local governments. We appeal to our people to keep to all outlined protocols to checkmate the spread.”
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Mojisola Yaya- Kolade, described SHIS as a long awaited health scheme that would provide easy access to quality healthcare across the 16 local governments.
Yaya-Kolade said that the scheme would achieve the universal health coverage for Ekiti residents and prevent the incessant out- of- pocket payment by the citizens to get treatments in health facilities. (NAN)
