Access to health insurance schemes in Nigeria: Implications on maternal mortality

Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between Nigerian women’s access to health insurance and maternal mortality, also considering the moderating role of women demographics. The coverage of National/State Health Insurance(NHI) especially as it relates with gender, age of respondents, type of health insurance, level of education of respondents, and area of residence was assessed. A cross-sectional survey of 2018 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey data set was used. For every 1% rise in the number of women enrolled with health insurance, there is a 53.4% decrease in maternal mortality rate. It was also discovered that the level of education and age significantly influence their access to health insurance, which in turn influenced rate of maternal mortality. The need to strategically increase women’s enrolmentand coverage in NHI is imperative as this can potentially improve women’s health outcomes especially among women with low educational qualification and residents of rural areas. It is therefore recommended that there is a strong policy in place to ensure effective inclusion of vulnerable members (women and children) and rural women under the national/state health insurance scheme.