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Dr. Kayode Obembe
VC/CEO

Opening address presented at the Annual General Meetingof Premier Medicaid Nigeria Limited HMO held on the 26th of May 2006 at Hypertension Clinic Iyaganku Ibadan by Dr. Kayode Obembe (Vice Chairman / Chief Executive Officer) Premier Medicaid (HMO) The board Chairman Company Legal Adviser Other Board Members Company Directors Guests, Members of the press My Lords Spiritual, Temporal and Medical Ladies and Gentlemen The World Health Organization (WHO) describes health as a state of physical, mental and social well being and not just the absence of disease or infirmity. On this note, I welcome you to the Annual General Meeting of Premier Medicaid (Nigeria) Limited, a company whose goal from the inception is predetermined to move the health of the nation forward by investing our material and human resources to the benefit of our country – Nigeria. Health Insurance is at its infancy in Nigeria. The sector was flagged off by the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed of Armed Forces of Nigeria Chief Olusegun Obasanjo GCFR on 6th June 2005. Many Nigerians still receive the idea with cynicism and skepticism. Human-beings are innately conservative, remotely complacent with natural propensity to react to innovation with spontaneous negativism. However, the world only moves forward when motivated few with revolutionary minds are discontented and disenchantment with status quo and positively move with determination to make things better. I am happy to note that you all belong to the category of these selected few who are determined to move the health of the nation forward. . It is particularly noteworthy that health industry is being seen now in new perspective. Rather than a single sick and impoverished patient confronting a single physician, who is short of drugs and equipments, health is coming up as a community venture, collective concern, indeed a systematic culture and a way of life that every citizen should imbibe. This concept has evolved into the idea of corporate governance, institutionalized advocacy and with resultant imperative parameters for monitoring the change process. The evolution of Public Private Partnership is consequential on this change process – the health reform agenda. This is not only a national, continental or intercontinental trend, but also universal in scope and consistency. Nigeria cannot afford to be left behind in this global trend, and so every Nigeria citizen is expected to come on board. One of the instruments put in place for achieving these objectives in Nigeria, is the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS). The health motoring indices in Nigeria show that this country need to braze up. Out of 191 countries, Nigeria was ranked as Number 187 by the experts from WHO. The last four countries were ravaged either by famine, fratricidal wars or natural disasters. To the glory of God, Nigeria is not bedeviled by any of these. Therefore, there is no justification for poor performance in health sector. With the NHIS in place, the perennial remonstrations and tantrums occasioned by poor funding in health sector will all be a thing of the past, yielding to a phase of industrial harmony and peaceful co-existence. According to International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) recommendation, the health of workers should be insured with 15% of their salaries, 10% to be contributed by employer and 5% by employee. Nigeria being a signatory to the resolution of this International body has no excuse for poor health indices once the NHIS has been put in place. It is exhilarating and heartwarming that very many diverse professional groups have subscribed to this scheme i.e. lawyers, clergymen, technocrats, farmers, public servants, teachers, nurses, engineers, insurance experts, bankers and journalists etc. They share the vision of the new health plan and have contributed substantially either in cash or kind to Premier Medicaid (Nigeria) Limited; the Health Maintenance Organisation (HMO) organizing this annual general meeting. To all these people I say a big thank you. I particularly welcome our Board Members and Directors who have come from all over country i.e. Abuja, Port-Harcourt , Maiduguri and Lagos. I also welcome officers from National Health Insurance Scheme to this gathering. The scheme I must say is commendable for effective mobilization and sensitization of the citizenry. I enjoin all Nigerians to cooperate. Long live Premier Medicaid Long live National Health Insurance Scheme Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria

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