Health Bill to become law soon — OBASANJO-BELLO

By Chiyere Amalu
The health Bill before the National Assembly stipulating 2 per cent of the nation’s annual budget will be domiciled into Primary Health Care (PHC) will soon be signed into law.

Chairperson, Senate Committee on Health, Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello, who disclosed this last week in Abuja, however regretted the grim statistics of women who die.

Obasanjo Bello, who spoke in Abuja at a one-day sensitisation workshop on effective reporting of counterfeit drugs towards reversing maternal and infant mortality in Nigeria, noted:

“The Bill when passed will cater for the needs of the pregnant women and guarantee unhindered access to maternal care especially in the grassroots.”

Country Director, Ipas, Dr. Ejike Orji highlighted the link between fake drugs and maternal and infant mortality.

“When a woman is haemorrhaging (profusely bleeding), what you need to do is to give an Egometrin injection or Mysoprosin tablet within 30 minutes to one hour. If any of the drugs is fake at that point in time, the woman is finished.”