The Federal Government is stepping up efforts to evaluate the impact of its health financing programmes amid concerns that high out-of-pocket spending continues to place a heavy financial burden on Nigerian households.
The National Health Insurance Authority disclosed this in a statement on Sunday ahead of the maiden Nigeria Health Financing Research & Learning Forum, which is scheduled to commence on Monday, September 28.
According to the Authority, the government has provided N235 billion through the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund over the last three years, making it necessary to establish whether the investments are delivering measurable improvements in healthcare services. Hence, Federal Govt reviews impact of N235-billion fund
“The federal government has also released N235billion through the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund in the past three years, increasing the importance of ensuring that growing health investments deliver measurable results.”
The NHIA also revealed that health insurance coverage had increased to more than 23 million enrollees. However, it noted that a large number of Nigerians still pay substantial amounts for healthcare directly from their pockets.
“Health insurance enrolment has risen to over 23 million, but out-of-pocket expenditure is still quite high, leaving many families exposed to heavy medical bills,” the Authority stated.
The two-day forum is expected to bring together policymakers, researchers, healthcare practitioners and health financing specialists from Nigeria and abroad to discuss how available resources can be deployed more effectively to achieve better healthcare outcomes.
The NHIA said the meeting forms part of wider Federal Government initiatives aimed at ensuring that healthcare expenditure results in improved services, broader access to quality treatment and better outcomes for patients.
Participants will consider how evidence can guide decisions on the treatments and health services that should receive funding, appropriate methods of paying healthcare providers and areas where scarce resources can have the greatest effect.
The forum is being held against the backdrop of ongoing health sector reforms being coordinated by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare under the supervision of the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate.
The reforms are designed to widen access to healthcare, enhance financial protection, improve health outcomes and ensure greater value for money from investments in the sector, the statement said.
The forum, themed: “Evidence and Learning for Nigeria’s Health Financing Future: Building a Locally Led Research and Learning Ecosystem,” will also examine how research findings and health data can be converted into practical decisions on health financing.
The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, NHIA, Health Strategy and Delivery Foundation, Nigeria Health Watch and the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research are working together on the initiative.
The NHIA highlighted Health Technology Assessment as an area where evidence is playing a growing role in financing decisions. The method helps determine whether medicines, treatments and other health interventions offer enough benefits to justify their costs.
The Authority said it had undertaken assessments on kidney replacement therapy, colorectal cancer screening and treatment for advanced liver cancer.
The forum is expected to identify weaknesses in available evidence while strengthening the connection between research, health financing policies and measurable improvements in patient care.
Among the experts expected at the event are NHIA Director-General and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Kelechi Ohiri; Canada Research Chair in Health Economics at the University of Manitoba, Prof. John Ataguba; Ghanaian health economist, Prof. Justice Nonvignon; and Prof. Chima Ariel Onoka of the University of Nigeria.
Others include Ethiopian health financing specialist, Dr Girmaye Dinsa; Dr Kheya Furtado of India’s Goa Institute of Management; Managing Principal of HSDF and health economist, Dr Yewande Ogundeji; and NHIA Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, Dr Kurfi Abubakar Muhammad.
The NHIA said the forum is ultimately aimed at strengthening evidence-based decisions in health financing and ensuring that increased government investment in healthcare leads to visible improvements in service delivery and stronger financial protection for Nigerians.
