By Jelili Gbadamosi
The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has expanded its support for cancer treatment by introducing a cost-sharing arrangement that will enable eligible patients to receive up to N400,000 towards radiotherapy.
The Director-General of the NHIA, Dr Kelechi Ohiri, disclosed this in Abuja during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), saying the initiative was aimed at reducing the financial burden of cancer treatment on patients.
Under the arrangement, the NHIA will cover 50 per cent of the cost of radiotherapy, subject to a maximum contribution of N400,000 per patient.
Ohiri said the intervention was introduced in response to the high cost of cancer treatment, which has forced some patients, particularly those requiring advanced care, to delay or abandon treatment.
He explained that the authority was collaborating with oncology centres across the country to improve access to radiotherapy and enhance the quality of cancer treatment.
The NHIA boss added that efforts were underway to accredit additional treatment centres while strengthening partnerships with pharmaceutical companies and medical equipment suppliers.
Beyond radiotherapy, Ohiri said the authority was expanding insurance coverage for other cancer-related services under its formal sector programme and the Group Individual and Family Social Health Insurance Programme (GIFSHIP).
He listed covered diagnostic services to include MRI and CT scans, mammography, ultrasound, histology, endoscopy and tumour marker tests.
He further disclosed that some cancer surgeries, including mastectomy and prostatectomy, as well as selected chemotherapy drugs, were covered under various cost-sharing arrangements.
According to him, more than 200 cancer patients receiving treatment at seven tertiary healthcare institutions across Nigeria had already benefited from the NHIA’s medicine cost-sharing programme.
The authority said the broader objective was to reduce financial barriers and ensure that more Nigerians can access timely and essential cancer care.
