Performance: GoHealth Organises Media Quarterly Meeting in Gombe
The Executive Secretary of the Gombe State Contributory Healthcare Management Agency, (GoHealth), Dr. Abubakar Musa, has unveiled plans of the agency to increase coverage of the scheme to include students of the state owned tertiary institutions, travellers on Gombeline vehicles towards ensuring Universal Health Coverage.
Musa who revealed this at a quarterly Media engagement said the agency was engaging the management of the Ministry of Higher Education to enrol students of the tertiary institutions in the state into the programme.
He said the Management of the Gombe State University has already keyed into the programme and committed to enrol all its students in the next academic session.
“There is a Medical Levy that students normally pay to those institutions at the beginning of every academic session and that is the medical levy that will now be channelled to GoHealth, to be able to provide that service.
“It’s not going to be a new charge per session on the students, but rather a better utilisation of the Medical Levy that the students are already paying to their institutions and a guarantee to more quality service,” Dr. Musa said.
The ES said the agency is also coming up with a new program that is called travellers health insurance scheme so that it provides health coverage for travelers in case of accident and emergencies.
Dr Musa said the agency is in the process of signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Gombe State Transport Company, Gombe-Line, to provide Health Insurance coverage for travellers using the transport service to take care of accidents and emergencies.
He said the agency is working modalities before the end of the year to roll out the programme.
Speaking on achievements recorded since inception of the program in 2021,the executive Secretary said the agency had rolled out the formal sector program were over forty thousand beniefiaries and dependents have been enrolled.
Accordingly to the Musa, the Agency has also commenced the informal sector and that of the equity which involves the vulnerable group has also enrolled about forty thousand beniefiaries.
He said the Agency has commenced the second phase and with the help of a new digital tool,was able to identify,rate, categorized the group based on their vulnerability and the most vulnerable were enrolled out of the one hundred thousand identified.
Musa added that Governor Yahaya has made commitment to release equity fund and the Basic Health Care provision fund state counterpart.
Musa said, “Just last week, I am very pleased to inform you that we met with His excellency, the Governor of Gombe State, Alhaji Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, who has given his commitment to the release of the 1% of the Equity Fund, as well as the Basic Health Care Provision Fund counterpart fund.
“A memo has already been submitted to that effect and we believe in the next couple of days or weeks, we should have that money released to the agency. That will enable us to enrol additional poor and vulnerable.”
He said people are now beginning to see the reality and benefits of the program and that most misconceptions had been addressed.
Responding to a question on some enrollees who pretend to be sick on behalf of someone, the Executive Secretary said the Agency is aware of such fraud and that the Standard and Quality assurance unit would be strengthened to fish them out saying anyone one found wanting would be dealt with according to the law.
Highlighting on Key activities of the Agency, Umar Wanda said the aim of the program is to provide Universal Health coverage to all Gombe state residents through an equitable and transparent mechanism for pooling of resources to finance quality healthcare via a number of pre-paymentprogrammes.
He said beneficiaries of the Scheme have been given access to quality health care service through the primary health care providers of their choice in all the programs offered by GoHealth,
“There are 118 HCP accredited as primary, secondary and tertiary providers for the Formal and Informal Sector: 68 are private facilities and 50 are public facilities 55 are primary providers, 59 are secondary providers and 4 are tertiary There are 133 HCP accredited as primary and secondary health care providers for the Equity(BHCPF) program:114 are primary health care providers(PHCCs) while,19 are secondary health care providers, “Wanda added.
He said, “To ensure quality health care service to the beneficiaries and to address complains and enquiries, GoHealth has established a 24/7 call and contact centre. Each beneficiairy is given an ID Card with the GoHealth call centre number at the back of the card for report of any thing done outside of the operational guidelines of GoHealth by the health care providers. A dedicated team is always available to address any.”
Earlier in an address of Welcome Alhassan Yahaya of the Hamada Multimedia Limited said “the essence of the meeting is for journalists to have an interface with GoHealth officials on activities so far conducted, share successes and challenges.”
PERISCOPE NIGERIA reports that the engagement which was interactive featured questions and answers session and was attended by broadcast, print and online journalists.
