Health
SUNU Health Debunks Health Insurance Myths and Showcases Value
SUNU Health Nigeria, an esteemed Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) with a legacy of over 26 years in delivering accessible healthcare solutions across Nigeria, was recently featured on Super FM 92.7 Lagos. During the broadcast, the organization aimed to debunk prevalent healthcare myths while showcasing the unmatched value it provides to its members.
In the early morning broadcast hosted by on-air-personality Peju Talabi (thatpejubabe) on Friday, April 19, 2024, SUNU Health Nigeria directed its attention towards individuals and families, addressing common misconceptions surrounding healthcare access and affordability in Nigeria.
Drawing upon its extensive expertise, robust customer service, and established partnerships within the healthcare industry, SUNU Health Nigeria, a member of the SUNU Group with a presence in seventeen (17) African countries, illuminated the significance of informed healthcare decision-making. Additionally, the organization dispelled myths that impede individuals from accessing essential healthcare services.
In his opening remarks during the 30-minute interview, Mr. Reginald Nweke, Head of Business Retention at SUNU Health, emphasized the company’s dedication to empowering Nigerians with important health nuggets. “We are delighted to have had the opportunity to engage with Super FM 92.7 and debunk common myths surrounding the health maintenance organization’s landscape. Importantly, we believe in empowering individuals with accurate information to make informed healthcare decisions. Our longstanding commitment to affordability, accessibility, and quality healthcare underscores our mission to create a healthier Nigeria for all.”
During the recent discussion on common misunderstandings surrounding the Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) industry, Mr. Reginald highlighted five widespread misconceptions that affect people from all walks of life.
Myth 1: Substandard Care with HMOs
There is a common misconception that HMOs provide substandard care by favouring generic medications over brand names. However, it’s important to understand that generic drugs are equally effective as their brand counterparts and often come at a lower cost. It’s essential to remember that healthcare professionals prioritize patient well-being above all else, as reflected in their oath. Doctors are trained to prescribe in generic name while the Pharmacist can dispense the available brands of the drug. HMOs strive to manage costs effectively while ensuring that enrollees receive high-quality medical care. Enrollees are advised not to patronise any hospital that dispense substandard drugs. Emphatically, Doctors are under an oath not to do harm and should not dispense substandard drugs.
Myth 2: HMOs Deny Care to Save Money
The primary goal of HMOs is to effectively manage the care of their enrollees, not deny it. In reality, it’s in their best interest to ensure that members receive appropriate treatment to prevent complications. Denying care would ultimately result in dissatisfied customers and higher costs in the long term. HMOs practice on the principle of best and necessary medicine.
Myth 3: HMOs Only for the Wealthy
This is false. HMOs provide a range of health insurance plans to accommodate various budgets. Affordable coverage is accessible to everyone, irrespective of social class or reputation.
Myth 4: Only Employers Can Provide Health Insurance
This is a misconception. You shouldn’t restrict yourself to employer-sponsored plans. Individual and family plans are readily available, making HMO coverage accessible to everyone.
Myth 5: Young and Healthy don’t Need Health Insurance
It’s important to recognize that accidents and illnesses can occur unexpectedly, regardless of age or health status. HMO coverage serves as a safety net, ensuring individuals receive necessary care without facing financial strain. HMOs provide all forms of access to medical care.
By debunking these misconceptions, HMOs provide a valuable solution for managing healthcare needs, enabling prospective enrollees to make informed decisions about their well-being. It also saves individuals and families from catastrophic expenditures because of ill health.
As a premier Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) in Nigeria, SUNU Health remains committed to fostering innovation and excellence in healthcare delivery. The company’s priority is to provide qualitative and prompt medical services at the most cost-effective price as humanity is the centre of our initiatives.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) says the number of Nigerians enrolled in health insurance has risen to more than 22 million.
The Director-General of NHIA, Mr Kelechi Ohiri, said this resulted from the implementation of the mandatory health insurance, which has gained momentum nationwide.
He said this on Wednesday at the Annual General Meeting of the Nigerian Association of Insurance and Pension Editors (NAIPE) in Lagos.
Mr Ohiri said enrolment had increased to 22.03 million, representing a 35 per cent year-on-year growth, attributing this to stronger collaboration with state social health insurance agencies, ministries, departments and agencies, organised labour, employers, the private sector, and the gradual implementation of the mandatory health insurance provisions of the NHIA Act.
He said that the country had moved beyond policy formulation to delivering measurable improvements in healthcare access, service quality and consumer protection in line with the federal government’s health sector reform agenda.
According to him, Nigeria already has the necessary policies and legislation to achieve Universal Health Coverage, positing that the key challenge was effective implementation.
“The decisive variable is now implementation- consistent, rigorous and accountable execution that converts political commitment into healthcare access for real Nigerians,” he said.
Mr Ohiri said that the transition from the former National Health Insurance Scheme to the NHIA had strengthened regulation, consumer protection, accountability and strategic purchasing, while providing the legal and operational framework for achieving Universal Health Coverage.
He added that improving the experience of enrollees remained central to the Authority’s reform agenda.
According to him, NHIA has strengthened its complaints management system, introduced faster resolution timelines, and intensified compliance monitoring of Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) and healthcare providers.
He further added that NHIA had sanctioned facilities that failed to meet the required standards, adding that his organisation had resolved 3,878 complaints, representing an 87 per cent resolution rate, while 95 per cent of the cases were concluded within prescribed timelines.
Mr Ohiri noted that more than N14.2 million had been refunded to enrollees, while non-compliant healthcare facilities had been sanctioned.
He said NHIA had also introduced service standards, including a one-hour treatment commencement target for enrollees requiring urgent care, to improve access to timely and quality healthcare services.
The NHIA boss further disclosed that capitation payments to healthcare providers had been increased by 93 per cent.
He said fee-for-service reimbursements rose by 378 per cent to enable providers to invest more in personnel, equipment and infrastructure.
According to him, 7,592 healthcare facilities have been assessed under the SafeCare quality framework as part of efforts to institutionalise continuous quality improvement across the country.
Mr Ohiri also highlighted interventions targeted at vulnerable groups, including support for more than 48,500 pregnant women, expanded maternal and newborn healthcare services, the Vulnerable Group Fund, and improved access to healthcare for pensioners and retirees.
He said Universal Health Coverage could only be achieved if every Nigerian, regardless of income or location, had access to quality healthcare services.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The new one-hour authorisation response time ultimatum policy introduced by the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has received the full backing of SUNU Health Nigeria Limited.
This policy was introduced by the agency to ensure enrollees get prompt approval codes to access care.
Healthcare service providers have been urged to report any Health Maintenance Organisation (HMO) that violates this initiative through an email, with the HMO in copy and a timestamp attached as evidence of the request. They may proceed to offer services to enrollees thereafter.
Speaking at the company’s second-quarter Providers’ Forum for the Lagos-Ogun region in Lagos recently, the chief executive of SUNU Health, Dr Moyosore Olomola, expressed optimism that this policy would improve healthcare delivery in the country, especially for enrollees, who crave quality service.
At the event themed Improving Quality and Access to Care Through Stronger Provider Network, and held at the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) in Yaba, Lagos, Mr Olomola reaffirmed the HMO’s commitment to operating within legal and operational frameworks to guarantee adequate care for enrollees.
“Access to care and quality of care remain key priorities in our healthcare systems. We know quite well that deliberate collaboration, strategic partnerships, and a shared commitment to excellence are required to achieve these priorities.
“A strong provider network is doubtless the backbone of any effective healthcare system. It ensures that our mutual enrollees receive the right care, at the right time, in the right place, and at the right price,” Mr Olomola, represented at the programme by the organisation’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Dr Faith Nwachi, stated.
He further assured that SUNU Health would strictly adhere to the one-hour authorisation limit, stressing that this aligns seamlessly with one of the organisation’s core values—promptness and its corporate slogan, Humanity is the centre of our initiatives.
In a bid to further improve access and quality of care, SUNU Health also demonstrated its new operational software and Mobile app, aptly named SUNU Legacy.
Also speaking at the event, the NHIA Lagos State Coordinator (Ikeja), Dr Bethuel-Kasimu Abraham, noted that the forum’s expected outcome is to significantly reduce delays in accessing medical care.
Other key expectations include ensuring continuity of care, improving patient outcomes, and strengthening accountability among HMOs.
Addressing specific pain points faced by enrollees, the NHIA Ogun State Coordinator, Mr Dare Adefeso, acknowledged that the agency had received complaints regarding out-of-stock drugs and the discrimination of enrollees by certain providers.
He affirmed that the NHIA is actively addressing these issues, stressing that moving forward, every facility must ensure enrollees are properly catered to regardless of their status, provided they have an active health insurance plan.
Corroborating the long-standing legacy of SUNU Health, the Ogun State Director of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mrs Aishat Tiamiyu, shared that her agency is responsible for public information dissemination and has been enrolled with SUNU Health for over 25 years.
Commending the HMO’s stellar service over two decades, she called for the immediate enrollment of new NOA staff into the scheme.
The Providers’ Forum remains one of the strategic channels employed by SUNU Health to consistently engage healthcare providers, understand their operational challenges, introduce new software updates, and solidify partnerships aimed at fostering premium healthcare delivery across Nigeria.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has announced the recall of a sexual enhancement product known as WAP Sensual Enhancement Capsules.
In a statement on Monday, the Nigerian agency disclosed that the recall is due to “undeclared pharmaceutical ingredients” in the product, whose country of origin is unknown, but is marketed and distributed online in the US through eBay.
It was emphasised that the recall is being “voluntarily” made by the manufacturer, Best Supplements Best Prices Company.
The detection of the undeclared pharmaceutical ingredients was made by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Laboratory analysis by the US FDA revealed that the product contained undeclared sildenafil, tadalafil, and flibanserin, which were not mentioned on the product label. Such substances may include phosphodiesterase type-5 (PDE-5) inhibitors or related compounds commonly used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction, the statement by NAFDAC stated.
Sildenafil and tadalafil are ingredients in FDA-approved prescription drugs used to treat erectile dysfunction.
It was noted that these undeclared ingredients may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs, such as nitroglycerin, and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels. Consumers with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or heart disease often take nitrates.
Flibanserin is the active ingredient in an FDA-approved prescription drug used to treat low sexual desire in women. Flibanserin can cause drowsiness, sedation, dangerously low blood pressure, and fainting, especially when combined with alcohol.
Consumers have been encouraged to report compromised products (medicines or medical devices) to the nearest NAFDAC office, call 0800-162-3322, or send an email to sf******@********ov.ng.
