In keeping with the provisions of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) Act 2022, Ultimate Health Management Services, a HMO, has recapitalised from N400 million to one billion Naira.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors, Angela Ajala, disclosed this on Friday in Abuja during the organisation’s 13th Annual General Meeting (AGM).

She said that the organisation went beyond the N750 million minimum requirements stipulated by NHIA, the regulatory body, for the sector.

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She explained that the organisation was able to achieve that because it was progressive and futuristic in its ideas.

Ajala also said that the HMO was not only particular about the wellbeing of Nigerians in Nigeria but also expanding its horizons to cater to the members in diaspora.

“We believe that if they say N750 million, we can do a billion because we are not restricting ourselves to just Nigeria, we’re going beyond.

“So, we needed to expand our base and made sure that we have the capacity to take on the expansion.

“We are dealing with human lives, so the wellbeing of every Nigerian, irrespective of where they are, is very critical to what we do,” she said.

The Managing Director of the organisation, Dr Lekan Ewenla, said inflationary trends needed to be put into consideration for the upward review of premiums so that hospitals could continue to provide services.

“Health insurance is volume driven with provision for basic healthcare services to be covered and an amount attached to the services to be rendered.

“All of these parameters were put into consideration in developing the health insurance programme for Nigerians,” he said.

Ewenla said that the primary health services were meant to be managed at the primary level by the risk managers

He said that the recommendation was to be N550 per person per month in 2005 and an upward review by a recommended percentage within 24 months.

“This was to take care of the inflationary trend which was responsible for the upward review of N550 to N750 in 2014.”

Ewenla said that the review was not carried out in the stipulated two years, which would have been 2007 but was carried out in 2014 instead, which saw the rise of premium from N550 to N750.

“Now the last review that was done was in 2014, we all know the exchange rate today and we all know that the bulk of the medications that we use in this country are imported.

“So, hospitals that are our primary risk bearers no longer enjoy the scheme,”he said.

The Ultimate Health HMO CEO added that his organisation was working with the regulatory agency to define the clusters available both in the formal and informal sectors of the nation.

He said this was to bring all Nigerians on board the scheme as stipulated in the Act.

“For example, we are looking at the youths of this country that are over 40 million in tertiary institutions across the nation. They will be mandated by the regulatory institutions.

“The organised private sector has partially complied.

“So, the next move is to bring those on the fringes on board.

“With time all the clusters would be brought on board.

“They all have associations and bodies that regulate them, which would make it easier once they are all sensitised about the benefits,’’Ewenla said.