The Nigerian Bar Association under the leadership of President Olumide Akpata and the superintendence of the Welfare Committee, chaired by Yakubu Chonoko Maikyau, SAN flagged off the NBA/NHIS Health Insurance Scheme at the Garki Hospital Abuja on the 22/2/22.
The event which culminated in the official handover of the NHIS-GIFSHIP Access Cards to the Nigerian Bar Association and Presentation to Beneficiaries of the Pilot Scheme took place at the NHIS headquarters in Abuja.
The Chairman of the Welfare Committee, Mr. Maikyau lauded the President for the thoughtful Policy and for giving the Committee the opportunity to deliver on the Scheme. He stated further that the NBA had signed an MOU with the NHIS in a bid to provide access to affordable medicare for Nigerian Lawyers. The scheme enrolled lawyers in the Country under the Group, Individual and Family Social Health Insurance Policy otherwise known as the GIFSHIP. GIFSHIP is a Health Insurance paid by groups, individuals and families that are otherwise not covered under other NHIS schemes.
Mr. Maikyau explained that the coverage entitles treatments for primary, secondary and 50% tertiary cases (surgeries & major investigations like MRI, CT Scan etc). The Enrollees are meant to pay only 10% of the cost of listed drugs. He also noted that under the scheme, the family members of a Lawyer can subscribe once the Lawyer is a member of the NBA and is of good standing. More so, Non – Legal Staff of Law Offices can also subscribe to the scheme.
In the Pilot Phase, the NBA paid for 1000 lawyers selected from all the 125 branches of the NBA using some set parameters which involved a 3 man Committee set up in each of the branches with the input of the chairmen of the Branches.
Members of the NBA who were not selected as part of the 1000 beneficiaries could still access the scheme by the payment of a yearly discounted subscription fee of N15,000 to the NHIS.
Also, members of the NBA were advised to take advantage of this laudable policy as it is said that Health is Wealth.
