Intent on capturing that critical demography in the project, the Ogun State Government says it is working to educate tertiary students about the importance of enrolling in its health insurance scheme.
The State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Tomi Coker, made the announcement on Thursday at the activation meeting with stakeholders for the “Tertiary Institutions Social Health Insurance Programme (TISHIP)” in Abeokuta, the state capital, South-West Nigeria.
The Commissioner for Education, Science, and Technology, Professor Abayomi Arigbabu, co-hosted the meeting.
Heads of tertiary institutions, both public and private, Deans of Students Affairs, and representatives of the Student Union Governments (SUGs) were present at the meeting.
Coker explained that the project aimed at relieving the students of the stress of having to use their funds to access quality healthcare in the state.
She stated that undergraduates were an important component of the scheme, “who, incidentally, have not benefited from it.”
The current administration in the state, according to her, had made significant investments in healthcare across all three tiers.
The Health Commissioner posited that incorporating the students would allow them to benefit from the scheme both on and off campus at any time of day or night.
Coker noted that the government has since enlisted the help of artisans, market men and women, and Community Development Associations (CDAs), among others, to promote the drive toward universal health coverage.
According to her, the government of Governor Dapo Abiodun is working to lay a solid foundation for the health sector that future generations will benefit from.
“I beg you to come up with ideas and suggestions that will improve the workability of this TISHIP,” Coker said.
She added: “We will have little to no cause for concern if our undergraduates are on board during any health emergency.
“The scheme has been designed to allow for referral, from the primary to secondary and tertiary levels of care.
“Any student of Ogun state does not have to pay out-of-pocket to access quality healthcare considering that the governor has provided equipment, good infrastructure and human resource for health, which are not always available to students.”
Speaking, the Commissioner for Education, Science, and Technology, stated that the initiative would ensure that students of tertiary institutions were properly cared for both on and off campus in the event of an emergency.
The activation meeting, according to him, was intended to sensitise the heads of tertiary institutions and the leaders of the students’ union to seek their consent.
He said that the meeting’s attendees could better educate the entire population of students at each institution of higher learning on the benefits of the scheme.
In his lecture, the Executive Secretary of the Ogun State Health Insurance Agency (OGSHIA), Dr. Afolabi Dosumu, expressed optimism that the scheme was here to stay in Ogun, “as it is backed by an Act of Parliament”.
He assured that participating in the initiative was the best way to ensure access to high-quality healthcare.
It would be recalled that Governor Abiodun launched the health insurance scheme for the informal sector and the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund (BHCPF) in February 2023.
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