The Senate on Wednesday passed for second reading a bill seeking to amend the National Health Act, 2014, to raise the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) from one percent to two percent of the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

The proposed amendment, sponsored by the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health, Senator Ipalibo Harry, seeks to guarantee sustainable financing for frontline health services and shield Nigerians from the impact of dwindling donor support.

If passed, the measure is expected to improve access to affordable, quality healthcare, reduce catastrophic out-of-pocket spending, strengthen epidemic preparedness, and safeguard essential services such as immunisation and maternal healthcare.

Leading the debate on the bill, Senator Harry described the proposal as both a legal and moral imperative to ensure the government fulfils its constitutional duty to guarantee citizens’ welfare.

“Section 14(2)(b) of our Constitution makes the security and welfare of the people the primary purpose of government,” she said. “This bill gives practical meaning to that provision by ensuring sustainable funding for basic health services.”

Harry explained that the BHCPF, established under Section 11 of the National Health Act, was Nigeria’s first statutory mechanism for sustainable health financing, designed to ensure a minimum package of care for citizens, particularly those in underserved communities.

She noted, however, that the current one percent allocation had become grossly inadequate in the face of rising healthcare costs, stagnating donor aid, and Nigeria’s gradual transition away from major global funding platforms.

Citing the 2022 National Health Accounts, Harry disclosed that out-of-pocket payments by Nigerians accounted for over 75 percent of total health expenditure, a situation she described as “unsustainable and inequitable.”

She warned that Nigeria’s exit from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the reduction in U.S. government support for health programmes could soon leave the country bearing the full financial burden of immunisation, maternal health, and epidemic control services.

“Without an increase in domestic financing, we risk reversing years of progress in child survival, epidemic preparedness, and access to essential care,” the senator cautioned.

Harry recalled that the National Dialogue on Health Financing, held in September 2025 and convened by the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health, Ministry of Finance, and the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, reached a national consensus on the need to raise the fund to two percent.

“This proposal reflects our shared understanding that health is an investment, not a cost,” she said. “It is a patriotic step toward achieving universal health coverage.”

The senator emphasised that primary health care remains the foundation of Nigeria’s health system, yet most primary health centres across the country are understaffed, underfunded, and poorly equipped.

By doubling the BHCPF, she said, the federal government would have the resources to rehabilitate facilities, recruit health workers, and ensure the delivery of essential services to women, children, and rural communities.

Harry assured that the amendment would not alter existing accountability frameworks, noting that the fund would continue to be jointly managed by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) and the NHIA, with performance and audit reports submitted annually to the National Assembly.

“Health is both a right and a constitutional duty of the state,” she said. “By supporting this bill, we are investing in the lives of our citizens and in the productivity of our nation.”

Several senators spoke in strong support of the proposal, describing it as a timely and forward-looking response to the country’s health financing challenges. They commended its focus on expanding access to quality healthcare and protecting vulnerable Nigerians.

The bill was thereafter passed for second reading and referred to the Senate Committee on Health for further legislative action.