Delta Govt launches health Insurance Scheme for students, indigent
By Godwin Udoh
Delta State Government has lunched a three health insurance scheme for students, indigent and artisan in the state.
Director general of the Delta State Contributory Health Commission, Dr Isaac Akpoveta who was speaking at the launch of the programme in Asaba recently, said the initiative is to make sure that by 2025 everyone in the state will be swimming in good health.
According to him, the programmes was introduced to bridge the gap between the community-based initiatives, which are: ‘Tertiary Institutions with Student Health Insurance Program, the Indigent Enrollee Adoption Program and the Artisan Enrollee Inducement Initiative,’
Giving an overview of different categories of the program, the DG said: ” The future remains paramount to us as we are steadfast in our mission to positively impact lives and contribute to the well-being of our society.
“Indigent Enrollee Adoption Initiative aims to cover all residents of the state while the Artisan Enrollee Inducement Initiative will encourage the artisans in the state to be able to key into the scheme through a provision of soft loans that will be sponsored by banks to all artisans in the state while the Tertiary Institutions Social Health Insurance Programme (TISHIP) aims to encourage the students in all the Tertiary institutions in the state to also have access to quality healthcare.”
He disclosed that the TISHIP offers students the opportunity to receive healthcare services outside the school premises or anywhere within the state.
“We have also partnered with organizations and banks to improve the healthcare infrastructure and plans for future expansion. We have synergy with other states so that when a student is in holidays he or she can access a health care service.
According to him, during the initial stages of implementation, our efforts were focused on improving maternal and child healthcare, the outcomes which were previously inadequate, over time, we developed a legal framework, akin to an empire’s decree, to guide our actions.
“This vision materialized into a tangible structure, symbolized by the tower erected in February 2016. As we began constructing this structure, it became evident that our government lacked a solid organizational framework,”
“Despite this challenges our registered hospitals were established across the region, and we began the transfer of patients for treatment and care.
“Today, we are proud to report significant progress with just Seven Thousand Naira. Just this week, we surpassed the milestone of providing healthcare services to over 2 million people for relief through our initiatives programs in the state.
“Our efforts have been recognized and validated, with social media serving as a platform to showcase our programs. We are particularly pleased to note the positive impact on university students, who now benefit from our services through their school fees. This transformation is evident in the increasing number of beneficiaries who have accessed healthcare without financial constraints.
“However, our work does not end here. We are committed to continuous improvement and innovation. To this end, we have initiated various programs, including the adoption of indigent individuals and support for artisans, to ensure equitable access to healthcare.
Additionally, we have launched a health insurance scheme tailored for students, further expanding coverage and support.
We are grateful for the support and collaboration of our partners and stakeholders, and we welcome any questions or feedback as we strive to achieve our goals.”
He used the medium to encourage well meaning Nigerians to assist their families and friends to subscribe to the scheme by helping them with the registration fees by paying for a certain number of persons in the community.
