The National Youth Service Corps NYSC has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Health for Insurance Scheme NHIS on the inclusion of Corps Members in the NHIS programme.
The Director-General of the NYSC, Brigadier General Shuaibu Ibrahim stated this when he led a delegation of the management to the Headquarters of NHIS in Abuja, Nigeria.
The Director General said that partnership with NHIS will cushion the health needs of the Corps members in their respective states of service.
He commended the Federal Government over its concern for Corps Welfare.
According to him, the signing of the MoU is in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s directive that all Corps members must be enrolled in the NHIS programme.
He further said that NYSC is already in partnership with several stakeholders, including the NCDC whereby all Corps members are tested for COVD-19 before admittance to the orientation camps, alongside other camp officials.
Inclusion into healthcare delivery
The Executive Secretary of the NHIS, Prof. Mohammed Nasir Sambo while acknowledging the visit said every Nigerian should be included in the healthcare delivery of the Federal Government.
He added that the NYSC and NHIS had worked assiduously through a joint technical team towards the development of a blueprint for the necessary financial provisions.
“We decided to sign an MOU so that the responsibilities of the two agencies will be clearly spelt out in order to have a hitch-free implementation”, the Executive Secretary said.
He also commended the Federal Government for increasing Corps members’ allowances, adding that the provision of a free medicare will spur them into higher level of service delivery to their fatherland.
Prof. Sambo said as a result of efforts by the NHIS to deepen the implementation of the rebranding agenda in the agency, it has developed a five-tenure strategic plan among other innovations.
He disclosed that the NHIS and State Health Insurance Agencies are developing a new initiative tagged; “Health Insurance Under One Roof“, where the two agencies would ensure adequate free medicare for all Nigerians.
He said that the law establishing the NHIS is not mandatory, but efforts are on-going to have a clear pathway for universal healthcare that will be mandatory for all Nigerians.
Emmanuel Ukoh
