Ogona Anita
The Executive Secretary of Rivers State Contributory Health Protection Programme (RIVCHPP) has emphasised that health insurance takes away catastrophic health expenditure when and where healthcare services are needed, urging Rivers residents to embrace and register with RIVCHPP, which is the state health insurance agency, to give them the opportunity to access quality healthcare services without paying from their pockets.
Dr. Agala made the disclosure at a town hall sensitisation/feedback and enrolment meeting for RIVCHPP’s enrollees in Eleme Local Government Area in Oghale Eleme.
The RIVCHPP Executive Secretary, who said that RIVCHPP has enrollees in all the 23 Local Government Areas of the state, however, decried the apathy of the people going to access care at the facilities, saying that it is the poor utilisation data that gave rise to the town hall meeting to get feedback.
Dr. Agala specifically mentioned that the utilisation of care for Eleme Local Government Area is not really encouraging, appealing to the people of the area to come up for registration in order to enjoy robust health care services.
In welcoming stakeholders to the town hall meeting, the Administrator of Eleme Local Government Area, Dr. Gloria Obo Dibiah encouraged the people of the area to wholeheartedly accept RIVCHPP’s programme because of the benefits that will help them live healthier, promising to partner RIVCHPP to enrol 2000 of Eleme citizens and residents into the health insurance scheme.
Speaking at the event, the state representative of Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), Dr. Simene Sangha said that beyond the services by RIVCHPP, his body wants to work closely with enrollees of RIVCHPP to identify barriers to services, as to proffer solutions, not only them but also on how to improve on the utilisation of the services.
Giving an address at the meeting, the Senior Special Assistant on Health to the Administrator of Rivers State, Prof. Chituru G. Orlunwene admonished people of the State to take their health needs serious, saying that healthcare is expensive, but that if they embrace and register with RIVCHPP, they can have access to quality healthcare services without paying from their pockets at the point of accessing the care.
Prof. Orlunwene then used the occasion to announce that the Administrator of the State, Vice Admiral ( Rtd) Ibok- Ete Ekwe Ibas, has constituted a board for RIVCHPP and has directed that all state government workers in Rivers State should come on board RIVCHPP’s health insurance scheme.
Expressing their gratitude to the state government for making RIVCHPP functional in the state, some beneficiaries of RIVCHPP thanked the government for saving them money and stress and at the same time making it possible for them and their children below 5 years to be enjoying free but quality healthcare services.
