The Plateau State Contributory Healthcare management Agency (PLASCHEMA), says it has received N327 million from the the government as the scheme’s counterpart funding for the vulnerable for 2024.
The Director-General (D-G), of PLASCHEMA, Dr. Manasseh Nanfwang, who stated this on Wednesday during a news briefing, said the fund was used to carter for the Plateau government’s Equity Health Plan.
Nanfwang, who was represented by Mr David Wuyep, the agency’s Director for Health Services and Standards Quality, said the equity plan was a totally free healthcare plan, being funded by the state and federal governments for vulnerable groups such as; children under five years of age, pregnant women, the elderly above 65 years, those living with disabilities and mental illnesses in Plateau.
He further listed other beneficiaries as the orphaned and vulnerable children, verified and registered with the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, as well as the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).
The DG, revealed that due to the prompt payments being made by the state government, the agency was up to date in terms of payment of its capitation and fee for service.
“We are currently up to date in terms of our payment, in fact we have paid upfront for the month of February,” he said.
According to Nanfwang, he was handed over the sum of N40 million from his predecessor, and that the backlog of capitation fee for service had been cleared.
He described PLASCHEMA as the biggest social safety net provided by the state government to eliminate out of the pocket expenditure, and to improve on the people’s health indices, and so could not be a conduit pipe to syphon government money as was being insinuated in some quarters.
He therefore, called on the general public, specifically those that were not classed as the vulnerable, who had not enrolled into the scheme, to take advantage of the window of opportunity to subsidise their healthcare financial expenditure.