The official launch of the first phase of the Universal Health Coverage has taken place in the Northwest Region. The launch took place at the North West Regional Fund for Health Promotion during an advocacy meeting that brought together the administration of the Region and some key health stakeholders and actors.
The Regional Delegate of Public Health Dr CHE SOH Kingsley who is also the North West Regional Coordinator of UHC Programme, after his keynote address, handled some strategic presentations on the implementation of the 1st phase of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) which included the context, the definition and guiding principles, the package of Health Services, the objectives, the beneficiaries, the sources of funding, the implementing structures, the benefits and the progress made so far in the implementation.
To Dr. CHE SOH the takeoff point for this phase is Enrolment. He did a practical projection on different steps of the digital enrolment process. He reiterated that we are in a digital age hence no one is to be left behind, which is why the Ministry and partners saw the necessity for an online application. The Application will be used for all the steps of enrolment, which starts by the pre-enrolment which is the registration phase. The application he says is user-friendly and provides for self-registration or registration by an enrolling agent, with or without an internet connection. After the enrollment, the beneficiary immediately obtains a receipt hence, a Universal Health Coverage card.
The presentation by the Delegate triggered concerns from participants. Governor Adolphe Lele L’Afrique moderated this session, indicating that it is an avenue to assess the level of understanding of the participants of the subject matter. The safety of the digital platform given that it collects so much personal data from subscribers, strategies for mass communication, logistic aspect like stock out of inputs, to technical aspects like capacity of the health facilities to offer hemodialysis services at all levels, reimbursement to health facilities, were some of the concerns raised. The Regional Delegate, in response, made mention of the readiness of the government and partners to minimize any lapses. He assured the participants that their data would be safe and well protected. Necessary arrangements have been made for available material and equipment needed as well as a perfect media strategy to get everyone on the enrolment sheet.
Dr. CHE SOH took out time to echo the package of services for the North West Region for this 1st phase of the Universal Health Coverage.
– Free Consultation of children below 5 years of age.
– Free treatment of simple and severe malaria in children below 5 years of age.
Hemodialysis of patients suffering from renal failure at an annual cost of only 15,000fcfa.
– Free management of persons living with HIV as well as Tuberculosis, amongst other preventive and promotional services.
In appraisal, Governor Adolphe Lele L’Afrique reminded the participants that access to health care is still a big challenge in Cameroon, as evidenced by the fact that in 2019, about 72% of health care expenditures was borne by out-of-pocket payment. Unfortunately, not more than 7% of Cameroonians presently benefit from a social security scheme of any kind. Upon the instructions of the Head of State H.E. Paul Biya in 2017, the Government of Cameroon has been working hard to ensure that Universal Health Coverage becomes a reality in the country. This is evident with the National launching of the 1st phase of Universal Health Coverage by H.E. the Minister of Public Health, on the 12th of April 2023 in the town of Bertoua in the East Region of Cameroon.
He urged all actors to employ commitment and effort, so that this initiative records a resounding success in the Region. The Governor launched a special appeal to the media to use the weapons of effective communication to push the agenda forward so that no one is left behind.
