The Effect Of Poverty And Access To Health-care

1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT

The cost of health care service in both public and private health facilities has sky rocketed in the recent past and it seems this will continue in years to come except an urgent intervention is put in place. While the ability to purchase health care is diminishing there is increasing poverty in the country (Nigeria), as it is the case with most developing nations. Therefore there is the need for urgent intervention at all levels and quarters to bring about access to all, no matter their position or where they live.   

The continuous inability of the sick and households to pay for health services is a common phenomenon in many health facilities across the length and breadth of Nigeria. This is, however, more common among the poor rural households and semi-urban dwellers. The situation may be so precarious that the sick?s relation may have to sell some properties of the sick or of the household in order to pay for medical bills. In other instances loans with high interest rates may be obtained on behalf of the sick and this are usually not devoid of the consequence of impoverish of both the sick and the household. In extreme cases of poverty the sick are often left at home without treatment or if already on treatment at a health center she/ he is taken home and left at the mercy of death. These unfortunate happenings could be attributed to lack of commitment on part of government at the three levels, federal, state and local governments. For example, the financial contribution of all level of government was only about 36% between 2002 and 2004 

while household have a share of an average of 64% within the same period1,5. This has been the pattern over the last 15 to 20 years.  The lack of health insurance for the poor is another major contributing factor. The National Health Insurance Scheme that is meant to alleviate the burden of high household expenditure on health is yet to reach the poor who need it most urgently, and the probability of reaching them in the near feature is almost not feasible because of the slow phase of attempt at implementation and for the lack of commitment on the part of government at all levels. The almost nonexistence of Private health insurance has further compounded the problem. As at the end of 2006 not many health insurance organization were in existence, even the mutual health organizations that were operating in early 1990s are almost in nonexistence today, except a few in Lagos State, e.g. Jas Medical Service in Mushin and Lawanson in surulere, Lagos.16 The other contributing factor and probably the most crucial for now is the lack of savings for Health (or illness) by households. It could be said that two factors are responsible for the failure to save for health. First, the high level of poverty in the country, where 60% of its citizens live below poverty line and secondly, there is significant level of lack of awareness among Nigerians and it?s households that they and the community could come together and save for their health care and thereby minimize the ugly, incessant and unnecessary incidence of catastrophic expenditure on health care and its impoverishment. 

It?s intended that this study will determine the level and frequency of household expenditure on health care and also explore the resources available to households in Keffi that could improve access to health care that are affordable, feasible, and sustainable.