The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has expanded health insurance interventions for cancer, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), maternal and newborn health as enrolment under Nigeria’s national health insurance system climbed above 23 million.
Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the NHIA, Dr Kelechi Ohiri, disclosed this in Abuja during the inaugural Civil Society Organisation-led Mid-Year Review of Nigeria’s National Health Sector Reforms.
Ohiri said the Authority was shifting emphasis from establishing the policy and legal framework for universal health coverage to ensuring that the reforms deliver measurable improvements in access, healthcare quality and financial protection.
He said the effectiveness of health insurance should be assessed not simply by the number of people registered but by whether enrollees can obtain appropriate treatment without facing unsustainable financial pressure.
NHIA expands cancer support
In cancer care, the NHIA has strengthened its partnership with Roche through a cost-sharing arrangement covering selected oncology medicines.
Under the arrangement, Roche contributes 50 per cent of the cost, the NHIA 30 per cent, while patients are responsible for the remaining 20 per cent.
The Authority has also introduced financial assistance ranging from N400,000 to full coverage for eligible radiotherapy patients.
The interventions complement existing cancer benefits, including mammography, CT and MRI scans, bone scans, cancer-related diagnostic services and radiotherapy.
Ohiri said the initiatives demonstrate how collaboration among government, insurers, healthcare providers and pharmaceutical companies could reduce the financial barriers associated with cancer treatment.
He said health insurance must provide meaningful protection when people fall ill, particularly in cases where treatment is expensive and prolonged.
HIV, TB coverage expands
The NHIA is also extending financial protection to people living with HIV and patients receiving treatment for tuberculosis through the Global Fund Resilient and Sustainable Systems for Health grant.
As of September 3, 2026, more than 51,000 beneficiaries had been covered across Anambra, Ebonyi, Gombe and Kwara states.
The beneficiaries include more than 46,000 primary enrollees and over 3,700 household members.
Among the primary beneficiaries were more than 38,000 people living with HIV, over 7,400 patients with drug-sensitive TB and 594 patients with drug-resistant TB.
The Authority has commenced accreditation of more than 2,000 healthcare facilities ahead of the implementation of Global Fund GC8 and a planned nationwide expansion of HIV/AIDS and TB coverage in 2027.
Maternal, newborn programmes reach 93,000
NHIA said its maternal and newborn health interventions have reached more than 93,000 women and newborns through the Comprehensive Emergency Obstetric and Newborn Care (CEmONC) and Fistula-Free programmes.
The beneficiaries include 79,221 women, 7,500 newborns and 6,044 women who received treatment for fistula.
The programmes operate across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, with 286 CEmONC-empanelled facilities and 22 National Obstetric Fistula Centres and partner facilities.
More than 40,000 women have also been enrolled through the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF).
The NHIA reported that case fatality at participating maternal health facilities declined by 22 per cent, from 1,042 in the 2024 baseline to 810 as of August 2026.
Enrolment rises from 16m to 23m
According to the Authority, national health insurance enrolment has increased from about 16 million at the beginning of the current administration to more than 23 million.
More than 2.7 million poor and vulnerable Nigerians have also received support through the BHCPF.
The NHIA said its patient-protection mechanisms had resulted in the resolution of 3,878 complaints and refunds totalling more than N14.2 million to affected enrollees.
It also issued 368 warning letters to healthcare facilities and suspended nine facilities for various infractions.
Inspection teams have been deployed to healthcare facilities to monitor compliance with the Authority’s one-hour treatment authorisation policy, as well as other patient-protection and quality-of-care requirements.
Reforms drive higher provider payments
The Authority said recent reforms had contributed to a 93 per cent increase in capitation and a 378 per cent rise in fee-for-service reimbursements.
More than 7,500 healthcare facilities have also undergone digital assessment under the SafeCare quality framework.
Ohiri said the next phase of the reform agenda would focus on converting increased insurance coverage into reliable access, improved health outcomes and meaningful financial protection.
He, however, acknowledged that despite the progress, a large proportion of Nigerians remained outside the health insurance system.
The NHIA chief said exceeding 23 million enrollees represented significant progress but also underscored the scale of the remaining coverage gap.
The Authority is therefore expected to continue expanding enrolment while strengthening patient protection, provider oversight and access to essential healthcare services.
