FG moves to incorporate TB services into BHCP fund

The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, has said that the government has put into its priority to incorporate Tuberculosis services in the package of care in the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) and National and State Health Insurance Schemes.

Ehanire who was represented by the Minister of State for Health, Dr Olurunibe Mamora, stated this at the Occasion of the Ministerial Press Briefing in Commemoration of 2021 World Tuberculosis Day in Abuja.

The 2021 World TB Day, themed “Clock is Ticking to End Tuberculosis” with the slogan “That cough fit be TB no be COVID.”

Ehanire said ​TB remains a major public health problem globally and due to our large population and prevailing socio-economic determinants of health, Nigeria is ranked 1st in Africa and 6th globally in 2020 WHO Global TB report, among the 30 high TB burden countries.

He added that Nigeria is also on the list of 14 countries with the triple burden of TB, HIV associated TB and multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB).

​”The main drivers of the TB burden in Nigeria are under-nutrition, HIV, diabetes, smoking and alcohol use, with over 400,000 estimated TB cases in 2019.”

“The working-age group of Nigerians 15 to 44 years is most affected by TB morbidity and mortality with over 150,000 estimated TB deaths in 2019.”

Ehanire further said ​Based on the foregoing, tackling TB is highly prioritised in Nigeria in line with the government’s effort to ensure good health and well-being for all Nigerians as envisioned in Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3.

“The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), through the National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme (NTBLCP) and with the support of partners, has initiated a number of interventions with some remarkable achievements.”

​”Government established the National TB and Leprosy Training Centre (NTBLTC), Zaria to undertake human resource development for the control of TB, with regular training of Health Care Workers on diagnosis and management of TB, including drug-resistant TB (DR-TB).

“To this end, the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations for TB diagnosis, treatment and prevention have been adapted, to provide the overall roadmap for the prevention and control of TB in Nigeria,” Ehanire said.

In his goodwill message, the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu said the focus of this year’s theme and slogan is timely in view of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Ihekweazu further stressed that because the two diseases share similar symptoms, “they need to have appropriate diagnosis for both diseases to determine the actual cause of any cough is crucial.

“It is also important to note that a patient may be infected by both COVID-19 and Tuberculosis.

“The “clock is ticking” is a call for all stakeholders, communities, and well-spirited individuals to join hands with the National TB and Leprosy Control Programme and the Federal Ministry of Health in the fight against Tuberculosis.

“Nigeria accounts for 11per cent of the global gaps between TB incidence and notified cases,” Ihekweazu added.

Ihekweazu called on all donor agencies, the government of Nigeria and other spirited individuals to support the NTBLCP with the required funding needed to combat this deadly disease.

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