BY SOLA OGUNDIPE
THE  last is yet to be heard about the Police Health Maintenance Organisation, HMO, recently granted accreditation by the National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS, as directed by   President Goodluck Jonathan.

The Health Managed Care Association of Nigeria, HMCAN, which is kicking against the approval, described the motive behind registration of the Police HMO as “suspect”.

In September this year, the President directed the NHIS to accredit the Nigeria Police Health Maintenance Ltd., as a fully functional Health Maintenance Organisation, HMO, following  a request by the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Hafiz Ringim.

Confirming the approval in Abuja, Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, in a letter to the Chairman, Board of Management of the NHIS said the President directed the NHIS to accredit the National Police HMO Ltd  to enable it commence active operations.

Earlier, in a letter dated August 17, 2011, the Inspector General of Police had urged the President to wade into the lingering issue of non-accreditation of the Police HMO. Ringim who said benefits of the NHIS are yet to be felt by the Police personnel and their families, described the Police HMO as an initiative that would enhance access to medical care for Police Personnel in line with the formal sector programme of the NHIS.

Prof. Chukwu

Lamenting that bureaucratic bottlenecks had frustrated noble objectives behind establishment of the Police HMO, he observed that there were no discernible mechanisms to cater for the numerous complaints by Police personnel arising from poor quality healthcare service delivery by the HMOs.

In the letter Ringimstated that the compelling need for a Police HMO, became necessary for the Police Force to incorporate the Police HMO and to request for accreditation in order to address the peculiarities inherent in provision of healthcare services within the Force.

“The Police HMO will obviously have proper appreciation and better understanding of the entire ramifications of Police operations and also put in place the much desired interface between Police enrollees of the Scheme, the healthcare providers and NHIS,” he argued.

But in its own letter to the Minister of Health, Executive Secretary of the Health Managed Care Association of Nigeria, HMCAN, Barr. Ngozi Nduka-Uba, faulted the accreditation of the Police HMO, describing the motive behind its registration as suspect.

In the letter dated September 23, 2011, Nduka-Uba alleged that the men and women of the Police are already being covered by established nine HMOs with proven track record.

She stated: “We protest the accreditation of this company sponsored by a group of individuals and insist that due process was not followed. While we acknowledge the rights of any group of individuals to incorporate an HMO. We demand immediate withdrawal of accreditation to this company as Police HMO.”

It has come to our notice that a private limited liability company, Police Health maintenance Ltd. has been accredited by the regulator by ministerial fiat. If this private company registered in 2007 failed to secure NHIS accreditation for over four years, what qualifies it now? More disturbing is the fact that the regulator was directed to accredit the company,” she noted.

Continuing, Nduka-Uba saideven if the Police must own an HMO, at variance with international best practice, it must be an HMO “owned” by the Police. “It is on record that there is no HMO owned/run by the Police anywhere. The concept of Police HMO is unprecedented anywhere in the world,” she argued.