The House of Representatives has urged the Federal Government to establish more fully equipped kidney dialysis centres in health facilities across the country and subsidise treatments for kidney disease patients.
This followed a unanimous adoption of a motion moved by Rep. Zannah Usman (APC-Borno) during plenary presided over by the Deputy Speaker of the house, Mr Idris Wase on Tuesday.
The motion was tagged “Provision of Adequate Equipment for Kidney Dialysis Centres at Subsidised Rates in Federal Government Health Facilities in Nigeria”.
Moving the motion, Usman said that subsidising the cost of treatment would encourage patients to seek early intervention.
The lawmaker noted that the disease reportedly affected 20 per cent of Nigerians and contributed to the rising mortality rates in the country.
He said the death rates were as a result of patients unable to afford the cost of treatment and access to facilities.
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He expressed concern that most communities did not have primary health centres which made it difficult to identify people with kidney disease and those that risked developing the disease.
He also said: “The rate of poverty in the country, lack of government attention on those with kidney disease, low number of doctors in rural areas, low number of nephrologists in the country and lack of facilities to effectively manage those patients are major challenges that need to be addressed urgently.”
The house, however, urged the Federal Government to employ qualified personnel to manage the centres and subsidise treatments for kidney disease patients.
The lawmakers also urged the Ministry of Information and Culture and the National Orientation Agency to commence sensitisation campaigns on the need to seek treatment in the healthcare facilities, especially those in the rural areas.
The house also urged the Ministry of Health to develop a framework to maintain the facilities to be provided.
Furthermore, the legislators mandated the Committees on Health Institutions, Healthcare Services and Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values to liaise with relevant stakeholders.
It stated that the cooperation was to ensure that provisions were made in the 2020 budget estimates or any supplementary budget for the establishment of fully equipped kidney dialysis centres across the country.
(NAN)
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