BHCPF: GoSAM appeals to Gombe Govt to release 2022 Equity Fund
By Chima Azubuike
Chairman of Gombe State Accountability Mechanism on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (GoSAM), Alhassan Yahya, has appealed to the State Government to pay equity fund for 2022.
PERISCOPE NIGERIA reports that Equity fund refers to agreed yearly contributions by both Federal Government and States to support the Basic Health Care Provision Fund towards attaining Universal Health Coverage, especially in providing succour to poor and vulnerable.
Yahya, in a chat with our Correspondent shortly after a two-day validation meeting for Community System Strengthening & BHCPF Policy Documents said the release of Equity Fund would ensure the provision of quality healthcare to poor and vulnerable.
The Chairman explained that more poor and vulnerable persons would be included in the programme with the release of the fund.
He said, “Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), is a government initiative but State Governments are expected to give quality health care services to the poor and vulnerable through each agency that is handling such programme. There is supposed to be state health insurance agency like GoHealth, so it is expected by the state government to give equity fund.
“Equity fund is the fund that will be used to improve the quality of care and it helps to increase the number of people that are supposed to be enrolled as well as for other logistics in the offices.”
Yahya lamented the challenges of not providing equity fund adding, “So without such support in national level your ranking will reduce and we don’t want our ranking to reduce that’s why as a civil society we are calling on the government as a matter of urgency to release the equity fund to go health for service for the year 2022.”
While decrying the challenges of such delay to medical health for poor and vulnerable Yahya added that it was not late for government to meet it part of bargain.
“Long time ago he (Governor Yahaya), released but in 2022 there was no release but the Federal Government has done its parts. So Gombe State Government should also do its part, so that the services given to the poor vulnerable will be a quality one and it will be used also to upgrade and increase the number of beneficiaries,” he added.
