By CHARLES IWUOHA

The Executive Secretary of Ebonyi State Health Insurance Scheme, Prof. Uzoma Agwu, has said that the State Government is ready and willing to start implementing the scheme only if the civil servants agreed to queue into the programme.

She added that 10 percent will come from counterpart funding while the rest will come from government, noting that government cannot pay this money if civil servants refuse to queue into the programme.

In a chat on Thursday with journalists in Abakaliki after meeting with the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and its affiliate bodies, Agwu noted that the meeting was to intimate them about the benefits adding that they accepted to get enrolled into the scheme.

She urged both the state and local government workers to cue in into the health insurance scheme noting that it will reduce mortality and improve mobility.

Her words: “The scheme is already getting implemented, 19,000 indigent beneficiaries, it is not only health centers and general hospitals, we have signed MOU with National Obstetrics Fistula Center Abakaliki NOFIC.

“In a very long time we have been trying to put life for what has been passed into law in 2018 by house of assembly, 2018 and we have not started implementing, we have to enroll civil servants to start having the benefits for effective health care with little cost, with small contribution and right chosen facilities, it will be reducing mortality and improve mobility.”

“The government has shown interest and willingness to start implementing because of the previous antagonism they got from labour union and decided this time to really say they are interested not only saying but go ahead order by implementing health insurance scheme of Ebonyi State.

“We came on board on October 2020, and we have in different fora try to convince labour leaders so that this State will benefit. They said where can the money be deducted from but we said most importantly let the civil servants agreed 10 percent will come from counterpart while the rest will come from govt. Government cannot pay this money if civil servants refuse to queue in to the programme.

“We are happy that today the labour union NLC and its affiliate bodies in that meeting have accepted to get enrolled in the health care. After this we can go to the MDAS and LGAS and sensitize the people after that we can implement the health insurance hoping that they will corporate.”