By Nnasom David

Azare—A 35-year-old woman, Hauwa Usman, from Gambaki village near Azare in Bauchi State, has safely delivered quadruplets at the Federal University of Health Sciences Teaching Hospital, Azare.

Hospital officials said Hauwa was rushed in with severe bleeding and diagnosed with blood loss before undergoing an emergency caesarean section. What was initially expected to be triplets turned out to be four babies—two boys and two girls.

Doctors explained that the surgery, medicines, blood transfusions, and hospital care were all covered under the Comprehensive Emergency Maternal, Obstetric and Neonatal Care (CEmONC) programme of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA).

NHIA Director-General, Dr. Kelechi Ohiri, said the case underscored the importance of health insurance, warning that out-of-pocket payments could be dangerous for families in emergencies. He noted that the initiative formed part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, added that health insurance coverage in Nigeria had risen to 20 million people—the highest in the country’s history.

NHIA officials in Bauchi described the successful delivery as a “national success story,” while hospital staff and well-wishers donated baby-care items to the family.

Hauwa and her babies are said to be in good health, with her husband expressing gratitude for the free medical care that saved his family.