Falana says Nigerians are entitled compulsory health insurance
A new research has shown that over 90 per cent of Nigerian women remain without health insurance, leaving millions vulnerable to preventable deaths during childbirth.
The research, which underscores Nigeria’s struggle with maternal mortality, states that cultural barriers, weak accountability systems, and poor access to skilled care continue to endanger women despite modest improvement in service delivery.
Findings from the three-year Iyaloju Initiative, implemented by the Maternal and Reproductive Health (MRH) Collective across 18 local councils in Lagos State, revealed a gradual shift from traditional birth attendants to formal health facilities. Yet, only 7.6 per cent of women surveyed at the end of the study had any form of insurance coverage.
Researchers stated that this financial exclusion forces families to rely on unsafe traditional practices or delay care during emergencies.
Executive Director of MRH Collective, Dr Olajumoke Oke, who spoke during the Iyaloju Dissemination Forum, held yesterday in Lagos, declared that the insurance gap reflects a deeper national crisis.She stressed that the forum was not merely to present findings but to collectively chart new ways of securing maternal health.
According to the research, deliveries at traditional birth attendants declined from 30.1 per cent in 2023 to 24.6 per cent in 2025, while public hospital deliveries rose slightly from 39.1 per cent to 40.7 per cent. Private hospitals also recorded a small increase from 30.8 per cent to 34.7 per cent. But affordability continues to drive choices, with over two-thirds of women who used traditional attendants citing cost as the main reason.
The research, which also highlighted improvement in respectful maternity care, with more women reporting that they were asked for consent during procedures and allowed companionship during delivery, recommended sustained behavioural change campaigns at the community level, stronger investments in mentoring health workers, and deliberate efforts to make health insurance affordable and accessible, especially for low-income women.
Also, Chief Operating Officer of MRH Collective, Funmi Owosho, said that the initiative sought to reduce maternal mortality through research, programmes, and advocacy.
MEANWHILE, a human rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has called on the federal and state governments to fully implement the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) Act 2022, stressing that Nigerians are now legally entitled to compulsory health insurance.
Falana said that the 2022 NHIA Act mandates universal access to a basic minimum package of care, with the creation of a vulnerable group fund to subsidise healthcare for children under five, pregnant women, the elderly, the physically and mentally challenged, and the indigent.
He said that to reinforce compliance, President Bola Tinubu, on September 3, 2025, directed all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to enrol their employees in the NHIA scheme.
“The directive also requires public procurement entities to present valid NHIA-issued health insurance certificates, with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation mandated to monitor enforcement.
“Despite these reforms, the Health Care Providers Association of Nigeria estimates that over 90 per cent of Nigerians remain uninsured,” he said.
Falana noted that this undermines the country’s constitutional and international obligations to guarantee adequate healthcare for all citizens.
