Katsina Health Insurance Enrolment Hits 583,460 Beneficiaries

0

KATSINA – Katsina State Governor, Malam Dikko Umaru Radda, has announced that enrolment under the Katsina State Health In­surance Scheme has increased from 355,000 beneficiaries in 2023 to 583,460 in 2026, represent­ing a 64 percent growth within three years.

Radda made the disclosure while flagging off the enrol­ment of 184,105 beneficiaries into the Basic Health Care Pro­vision Fund (BHCPF) across Katsina State’s 361 political wards at the General Hospital, Katsina on Friday.

He said the achievement re­flects his administration’s sus­tained investment in expanding access to quality healthcare and ensuring that poor and vulnera­ble citizens are not left behind.

“Today, we are not merely launching another programme. We are taking another bold step towards ensuring that health­care becomes a right and not a privilege for every citizen of Katsina State,” the Governor declared.

Governor Radda stated that Katsina has emerged as one of Nigeria’s leading states in healthcare financing and ser­vice delivery, with the Katsina State Contributory Health­care Management Agency (KTSCHMA) winning the Na­tional Health Insurance Excel­lence Award in both 2024 and 2025.

He disclosed that the agen­cy has also hosted peer-review visits from seven states seek­ing to understudy Katsina’s in­novative healthcare financing model.

Radda disclosed that about 98 percent of state and local gov­ernment employees have been enrolled into the health insur­ance scheme, while retirees, members of the Hisbah Corps, the Katsina State Community Watch Corps and persons with disabilities continue to benefit from free health insurance pro­vided by the state government.

The Governor also an­nounced the mandatory re­quirement of the Enrolment into the Katsina State Health Insurance Scheme for all gov­ernment employment pro­grammes.

“An Executive Memoran­dum will be issued immedi­ately to ensure full compliance across all Ministries, Depart­ments and Agencies. Health insurance is now mandatory in Katsina State because we are determined to protect our people from avoidable finan­cial hardship arising from medical expenses,” the Gover­nor stated.

He commended the Director General of KTSCHMA, Moham­med Safana, for his exemplary leadership and professional­ism, noting that his emergence as Chairman of the Forum of Chief Executive Officers of State Social Health Insurance Agencies reflects the confidence reposed in him by his colleagues across the country.

The Governor also praised the agency’s Governing Coun­cil, management and staff for building a transparent, account­able and efficient health insur­ance system that continues to improve healthcare delivery across Katsina State.

He further disclosed that, in line with the resolutions of the recent National Health In­surance Summit, Katsina State has commenced the process of establishing a sustainable healthcare financing model to safeguard the gains recorded in the health sector and preserve them for future generations.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Health, Hon. Musa Adamu Funtua, said the administration has revitalised over 200 Prima­ry Healthcare Centres, recruit­ed more than 1,000 frontline healthcare workers, expanded the Drug Revolving Fund by 400 percent, and increased funding for the state’s Free Medicare Programme by 207 percent.

Adamu noted that KTSCHMA’s capitation and fee-for-service financing model has transformed healthcare de­livery at the General Hospital, Katsina, through the renova­tion and expansion of critical facilities, the revival of an abandoned operating theatre, the establishment of a Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) and the provision of modern med­ical equipment, including ECG machines, ultrasound scanners and oxygen concentrators.

Also Speaking, the Director General of the Katsina State Contributory Healthcare Man­agement Agency (KTSCHMA), Mohammed Safana, described the official flag-off of the BH­CPF enrollment as a historic milestone in Katsina’s journey towards Universal Health Cov­erage.

He explained that the BH­CPF finances essential primary healthcare services, including antenatal care, immunisation, chronic disease screening and other lifesaving interventions for poor and vulnerable resi­dents.

On his part, the Medical Di­rector of General Hospital, Kat­sina, Dr. Abdulrahman Muham­mad, thanked Governor Radda for providing the hospital with an Electronic Medical Records (EMR) system, solar power gen­erators and a dedicated cleaning company, describing the inter­ventions as transformative.