Aduragbemi Omiyale
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Buying a health insurance policy has now been made easier by a leading telecommunications services provider, Airtel Nigeria, as a result of a strategic partnership with a foremost healthcare service provider, AXA Mansard Insurance Plc.
The collaboration between both organisations is aimed to deepen access, participation and enrolment in health insurance for more Nigerians.
Business Post gathered that with the deal, customers can now simply dial *987*7# on their Airtel number to enrol for affordable and robust mobile health insurance plans from AXA Mansard.
It was learned that this initiative is in response to the federal government’s goal, through the National Health Insurance Scheme, to provide easy access to healthcare for all Nigerians by leveraging on the USSD channel, an easy-to-use and interactive platform.
“Airtel Nigeria is always exploring innovative ways and platforms that will make life easier, more meaningful and more enjoyable for Nigerians.
“With this initiative, we are not just delivering bespoke health insurance services to the doorstep of more people, we are also leading a quiet revolution that will drive and deepen health insurance inclusion by removing the many barriers that have hitherto excluded many well-meaning Nigerians from participating in the sector,” the Head of Mobile Financial Services at Airtel Nigeria, Mr Muyiwa Ebitanmi, said.
Insurance penetration in Nigeria is still low and this is because of various factors like implementation of health insurance schemes, low level of awareness, affordability, ineffective distribution systems and inefficient payment models.
The partnership between Airtel Nigeria and AXA Mansard is aimed at solving these challenges and assisting Nigerians to access a viable health insurance scheme as subscribers will have access to over 1,000 hospitals nationwide for quality healthcare services.
Malaria cover, inpatient, outpatient, specialist medical consultations, immunizations, family planning, ambulance services, dental care and more are some of the covers provided in the AXA Mansard Health plans.
“Our research has shown the value and importance of having a health insurance plan to the public especially for the emerging customers in the country, but for many reasons, the uptake of insurance products has been low,” the Head of Emerging Customers and Digital Partnerships Group at AXA Mansard, Mr Alfred Egbai, commented on the transaction.
He further said, “In order to mitigate these challenges and satisfy the health needs of the retail consumer whilst also encouraging the uptake of health insurance in the country, we have partnered with Airtel Nigeria to provide a solution that gives users a convenient way to purchase and manage their AXA Mansard micro-insurance plans.
