The concept of Social Health Insurance was first mooted in 1962 by the Halevi Committee, which passed the proposal through the Lagos Health Bill. Unfortunately, it was truncated. However, various groups and individuals kept agitating for it. The concept refused to die.
At its 42nd meeting in 1993, the National Council on Health (NCH) approved the repackaging of what it called the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS, to ensure full private sector participation. This model ensured the introduction of Health Maintenance Organization (HMOs) as financial managers of the Scheme.
On October 15th, 1993, the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS, was finally launched. The enabling law, Decree 35 of 1999 (now Act 35 of 1999), was signed in May 1999. National Council on Health special meeting on NHIS held in Port Harcourt in July 2001 recommended the need for the scheme to take-off. Thereafter an Implementation Planning Committee was set up which met in September 2001 and submitted its report recommending the immediate take-off of the Scheme. The administration of Olusegun Obasanjo accepted the recommendation.
The NHIS has its headquarters in Abuja with State offices located in every state capital in the country.
NHIS Operational Guidelines
Any business that has 10 employees or more must offer healthcare. The employer must pay for at least 10% of the coverage cost. The employee is only responsible for contributing no more than 5% of the cost. The rest of the cost of healthcare is paid for by the government. Any subscriber paying for more than 5% of his/her healthcare cost should contact the NHIS.
Once you enroll in the NHIS, you can choose to change your primary healthcare facility after six months if you are unsatisfied with the service. Once you are fully enrolled and registered, you have a right to receive medical care. You can also add up to 4 dependents to your plan. If you have more than 4 dependents, you can add more if you agree to pay a fee.
If a NHIS accredited hospital refuses to treat a NHIS enrolled patient, the facility will be issued a fine of no less than N100,000 along with a warning and a suspension of no less than 3 months. Similarly, if an employee of a NHIS accredited hospital charges any extra fees for health services, all money must be refunded to the enrollee and the hospital will be fined no less than N100,000.
