By Patrick Titus, Uyo
The Akwa Ibom State Health Insurance Agency (AKSHIA), has enrolled over 165,000 people into the scheme under one year of commencement, an indication of the people’s growing interest and confidence in the programme.
The Chairman of AKSHIA, Dr. Edikan Ekwere who disclosed this during a chat with journalists in Uyo on Wednesday said, the enrollment cuts across the formal, informal sectors and vulnerable populations in the state.
For sustainability and improved service delivery to enrollees and the general population at all levels, Dr. Ekwere who is also the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Umo Eno on Health Insurance, said the state government has made huge investments in the healthcare facilities.
This, he explained, include the construction, rehabilitation, and revamping of primary and secondary healthcare facilities in the state.
The Chairman expressed optimism that with the oncoming tertiary institution social health insurance programme, and other programmes, the agency will have more enrollees.
“As at today, we are pleased to inform you that over 165,000 citizens and residents of Akwa Ibom State have so far been enrolled into the State Health Insurance Scheme, cutting across the formal, informal sectors, and vulnerable populations.
“This milestone reflects our growing reach and the increasing confidence of the people in the scheme. In addition, the state government has made significant investments in healthcare through the construction, rehabilitation, and revamping of primary and secondary healthcare facilities across the state, ensuring improved service delivery for enrollees and the general population at all levels.” Dr. Ekwere said.
Looking ahead, the chairman added, “while we have made commendable progress, more still to be done as we work towards our daunting target of over half a million enrollees by end of next year.”
He reiterated that those at the informal sector could as well benefit from the scheme by making an annual payment of N18,000 upfront saying that part of Governor Umo Eno’s decisions to declare a state of emergency on health sector was to guarantee families’ access to quality healthcare services and protecting them from the burden of out-of-pocket medical expenses.
Speaking on this year’s celebration of the universal health coverage day with the theme, “Unaffordable health costs? We’re sick of it”, the SSA said the theme underscored the urgent need to reduce out-of-pocket spending and protect families from the financial burden of illness.
He posited that universal health coverage remained a top priority of the Akwa Ibom State government which is not merely an aspiration but a deliberate policy direction backed by unwavering dedication to service embedded in the ARISE Agenda of the state governor, Pastor Umo Eno.
On his part, the Executive Secretary, Akwa Ibom State Health Insurance Agency, Dr. Arthur Igbemi noted that due to paucity of funds, the scheme does not cover the treatment of some ailments such as cancer, Tuberculosis, HIV, or cosmetic surgery but covers all tests and screenings.
”Funding is another challenge, you need funds to cater for a lot of vulnerable persons in the state even the Governor may have a lot to do but may not have all the resources to do so. Some sicknesses are not covered under this scheme like cancer of any type. In this regard we do some screening but don’t undertake the treatment. Cancer is a terminal sickness. So the money that would have have been used to treat 20 persons cannot be used for one person who eventually could die.
“We have all it takes to get the best from the health sector, we have strong political will in the person of Governor Umo Eno and a very proactive commissioner for Health, Dr. Ekem Emmanuel John, then the team leaders here to execute any task in health sector.” He however assured.
Also speaking, the Executive Secretary, Akwa Ibom State Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Eno Attah described primary healthcare as the foundation for achieving universal health coverage. Attah noted that Primary health centre provides services to over 80 per cent of the population with 80 per cent of the most common ailment.
It would be recalled that the Akwa Ibom State’s mandatory health insurance scheme, managed by the Akwa Ibom State Health Insurance Agency (AKSHIA), was established through a law passed in 2021, called Akwa Ibom State Health Insurance Scheme Law No. 2, 2021, providing the legal framework for a state-level single pool system to cover all residents, aiming for Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
The Agency began operation upon the inauguration of its Board by Governor Umo Eno in July 2024 with identification accreditation of the health facility in the state and later with enrollment drives for specific groups like persons with disabilities in early 2025.
