Related Experiment Videos
MODELLING TELECOM-DRIVEN HEALTH INSURANCE FINANCING IN NIGERIA: A TECHNO-ECONOMIC NARRATIVE REVIEW
G A Obute1,2, A I Akyala1, S Usen-Obong1
1Global Health and Infectious Disease Control Institute (GHIDI), Nassarawa State University, Keffi, Nigeria.
Background:
Nigeria's path to Universal Health Coverage is constrained by high out-of-pocket spending and low health-insurance enrolment. Although the National Health Insurance Authority Act of 2022 strengthened the legal basis for coverage, financing and service-delivery gaps remain. With more than 220 million mobile subscriptions, the telecommunications sector offers a practical route for linking digital payments with health-insurance financing. This review examines how telecommunications can support health-insurance financing in Nigeria through a techno-economic lens, highlighting opportunities, barriers, and policy requirements.
Methods:
A narrative literature review was conducted between March and August 2025 using PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. English-language publications from 2010 to 2025 focusing on digital health, telecommunications, health financing, and health insurance in Nigeria and comparable low- and middle-income countries were included. Additional evidence from policy documents, regulatory frameworks, institutional reports, and grey literature was integrated. Data were thematically synthesised across five domains: health financing, telecom and fintech infrastructure, techno-economic frameworks, operational models, and governance.
Results:
The review found that telecom-supported initiatives, including MTN Y'ello Health, Airtel-AXA Mansard, and WellaHealth, show potential to improve enrolment, affordability, premium collection, and claims processing through mobile payment systems. These models may strengthen financial inclusion and administrative efficiency, particularly for informal-sector and underserved populations. However, persistent challenges include poor broadband access, high data costs, regulatory overlap, low public awareness, limited benefit coverage, and uncertain long-term sustainability. Technoeconomic evaluation highlights the need for interoperability, scalability, equity, and sustainable financing.
Conclusion:
Telecom-driven health insurance can contribute to more equitable coverage in Nigeria if embedded within the national healthfinancing architecture and supported by interoperable data systems, strong consumer protection, affordable benefit design, and inclusive implementation. Adaptive techno-economic evaluation should guide pricing, subsidies, regulation, and scale-up.
Related Concept Videos
01:29Issues And Trends In Healthcare Delivery System
Cost Containment
Payment for healthcare services has historically promoted adoption of costly and often unnecessary or inefficient...
01:11Secondary Healthcare System
01:26Methods Of Healthcare Delivery System
Managed Care System:
The managed care system is designed to control the cost while maintaining the quality of care. The patient's care from admission to discharge is planned by the primary care provider or the case manager, also known as the gatekeeper. In a managed care system, the number of care providers is limited...
01:30Health Information Technology and Healthcare Information System
Health Information Technology, commonly called HIT, integrates advanced information systems and technology in healthcare settings. Its primary functions include:
01:30Primary Healthcare Services
In 1978, international leaders convened in Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan, for what would be a pivotal event in global health. The Alma-Ata Declaration was the first to call...
01:25Models of Health Promotion and Illness Prevention I
The health belief model (HBM) attempts to predict health-related behavior in specific belief patterns. According to the HBM, a person's...