Nigeria’s Senate has, on Thursday, adopted a resolution to provide chronic kidney disease patients with comprehensive health insurance packages.
The resolution followed a motion sponsored by Senator Abdulaziz Musa Yar’adua representing Katsina Central Senatorial District, seeking, “increased awareness and improvement of kidney treatment facilities in Nigeria.”
The motion which was brought to the floor as part of “World Kidney Day”, by the Katsina lawmaker raised concern over critical challenges faced by kidney patients in Nigeria.
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According to him, there was empirical evidence to show that over 25 million Nigerians are down with chronic kidney disease, lamenting that there was no attention paid to them due to the high cost of treatment.
“Recent statistics from the Nigerian Association of Nephrology, NAN, revealed that an alarming 25 million Nigerians are living with kidney disease,” he said.
“This calls for urgent attention to address the prevalence of this life-threatening condition and improve kidney treatment facilities in our country.
“Reports that Chronic kidney disease constitutes about 40% of referrals to tertiary hospitals in Nigeria and is a significant contributor to daily hospital admissions.
“Finds that the cost of dialysis sessions in Nigeria ranges from N20,000 to N50,000 per session, leading to low adherence rates due to financial constraints.
“Further finds that the alternative to dialysis, kidney transplantation, is financially unattainable for many, with the cost exceeding N6,500,000.
“Aware that the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS, in Nigeria provides limited coverage for CKD patients, highlighting the need for expanded insurance coverage to support treatment.”
After various contributions by lawmakers, the prayer that “the Federal Ministry of Health and other allied ministries should Implement infection prevention training and supervision protocols to safeguard Chronic Kidney Diseases patients, among others, were sustained by the Senate President, Godswill Obot Akpabio. – DP
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