‘Coverage for 83m Nigerians’ — Buhari signs national health insurance bill into law

President Muhammadu Buhari has signed the National Health Insurance Authority Bill 2022 into law.

The new legislation repeals the National Health Insurance Scheme Act 2004.

Speaking during the signing of the bill, Buhari said the new law makes provisions for the setup of a trust fund “to ensure the coverage of 83 million poor Nigerians who cannot afford to pay premiums as recommended by the Lancet Nigeria Commission”.

“For the large number of vulnerable individuals who are not able to pay health insurance premiums, a Vulnerable Group Fund will be set up to include a component of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund due to the Authority, Health Insurance Levy, Special Intervention Fund, and any investment proceeds, donations and gifts to the Authority,” Buhari was quoted as saying in a statement by Garba Shehu, his spokesman.

The president also said there will be collaborations with state government health insurance schemes to accredit primary and secondary health facilities to ensure the delivery of quality health services.

He asked the health sector reform committee — inaugurated in January 2022 — to work with state governments, the federal ministry of health, and the national health insurance authority to ensure the implementation of the new act.

According to the statement, under the new act, the health insurance authority and state governments will also develop information management systems and digital records for better data collection, monitoring, and quality assurance.