Health Management Practices and Health Insurance Uptake among Lagos State Civil Servants

Olufemi Adebowale ABASS; Omowunmi Qubrat BAKARE; Temidayo Jerry OLUBUSADE; Abibat Bukola SHOMUYIWA

Olufemi Adebowale ABASS Department of Insurance, Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos
Omowunmi Qubrat BAKARE Department of Community Health and Primary Health Care, Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos
Temidayo Jerry OLUBUSADE Department of Insurance, Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos
Abibat Bukola SHOMUYIWA Department of Insurance, Lagos State University, Ojo, Lagos

Keywords: Healthcare financing, health insurance literacy, health insurance uptake, service quality

Abstract

Health insurance is a veritable mechanism for managing health-related costs. Despite its benefits, the uptake of health insurance in Lagos State still remains low. The study examined the effect of health management practices on the uptake of health insurance among Lagos State civil servants. A survey research design was adopted. The population was departmentalised into demand (civil servants) and supply (health care providers). The sample size for the demand was three hundred and ninety-nine (399), and the supply was one hundred and ninety (190), using Taro-Yamane sampling sample size determination. Multistage sampling techniques were adopted. Regression analysis was applied to test the hypotheses. The results indicated significant relationships between health insurance literacy, coverage breadth, and service quality, and health insurance utilisation, demand for health insurance, and access to healthcare, respectively. The study concluded that improved health management practices, such as health insurance literacy, coverage breadth, and service quality, would increase health insurance uptake among Lagos State civil servants. Therefore, health providers in Lagos State should add ancillary benefits to health coverage. The government and its agencies should further create awareness on the usefulness and benefits of health insurance plans.