Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern Nigeria

Background: Out-of-pocket payments for healthcare services hinders the attainment of universal health coverage. Objectives: To assess the current level of knowledge, perception, and willingness to enrol in a health insurance scheme among uninsured persons in Nigeria. Methods: This was a descrip...

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Main Authors: Unyime Eshiet, Abasibiangake Sunday, Ikpeme Neto, Joy Umoh, Victor Mba, Blessing Udo
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Riyadh Second Health Cluster Research Center, King Fahad Medical City (KFMC) 2025-04-01
Series:The Journal of Medicine, Law & Public Health
Subjects:
Online Access:https://jmlph.net/index.php/jmlph/article/view/203
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author Unyime Eshiet
Abasibiangake Sunday
Ikpeme Neto
Joy Umoh
Victor Mba
Blessing Udo
author_facet Unyime Eshiet
Abasibiangake Sunday
Ikpeme Neto
Joy Umoh
Victor Mba
Blessing Udo
author_sort Unyime Eshiet
collection DOAJ
description Background: Out-of-pocket payments for healthcare services hinders the attainment of universal health coverage. Objectives: To assess the current level of knowledge, perception, and willingness to enrol in a health insurance scheme among uninsured persons in Nigeria. Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among residents of Uyo, a city in southern Nigeria, who had not enrolled in any health insurance scheme  Results: About 14.3% (n = 72) of the study participants visited healthcare facilities at least once a week to address medical conditions for either themselves or their dependents. Although 335 (66.5%) of our respondents had heard of health insurance schemes, only 92 (18.3%) claimed to know how they work. Moreover, about 42.3% (n = 213) of our respondent perceived health insurance schemes as being expensive, while 102 (20.2%) considered it a waste of resources. Only 25.4% (n = 128) of the study participants were willing to subscribe to a health insurance scheme. Conclusion: Knowledge of the concept of health insurance as well as awareness of the existence of affordable insurance plans is poor in a significant proportion of the population studied. Many respondents had a poor perception regarding health insurance schemes with the majority unwilling to enrol in one.  
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spelling doaj-art-36dd1df2e0574b91bafe1e28170ea1652025-08-20T02:18:50ZengRiyadh Second Health Cluster Research Center, King Fahad Medical City (KFMC)The Journal of Medicine, Law & Public Health2788-98152788-791X2025-04-0153Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern NigeriaUnyime Eshiet0Abasibiangake Sunday1Ikpeme Neto2Joy Umoh3Victor Mba4Blessing Udo5Department of Clinical Pharmacy & Biopharmacy, University of Uyo, Nigeria Wellahealth Ltd., Uyo, NigeriaWellahealth Ltd., Uyo, NigeriaE-Mediconsult Ltd., Abak, NigeriaE-Mediconsult Ltd., Abak, NigeriaE-Mediconsult Ltd., Abak, Nigeria Background: Out-of-pocket payments for healthcare services hinders the attainment of universal health coverage. Objectives: To assess the current level of knowledge, perception, and willingness to enrol in a health insurance scheme among uninsured persons in Nigeria. Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted among residents of Uyo, a city in southern Nigeria, who had not enrolled in any health insurance scheme  Results: About 14.3% (n = 72) of the study participants visited healthcare facilities at least once a week to address medical conditions for either themselves or their dependents. Although 335 (66.5%) of our respondents had heard of health insurance schemes, only 92 (18.3%) claimed to know how they work. Moreover, about 42.3% (n = 213) of our respondent perceived health insurance schemes as being expensive, while 102 (20.2%) considered it a waste of resources. Only 25.4% (n = 128) of the study participants were willing to subscribe to a health insurance scheme. Conclusion: Knowledge of the concept of health insurance as well as awareness of the existence of affordable insurance plans is poor in a significant proportion of the population studied. Many respondents had a poor perception regarding health insurance schemes with the majority unwilling to enrol in one.   https://jmlph.net/index.php/jmlph/article/view/203Health InsuranceKnowledgeOut-of-Pocket ExpenditurePerceptionWillingness To Enroll
spellingShingle Unyime Eshiet
Abasibiangake Sunday
Ikpeme Neto
Joy Umoh
Victor Mba
Blessing Udo
Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern Nigeria
The Journal of Medicine, Law & Public Health
Health Insurance
Knowledge
Out-of-Pocket Expenditure
Perception
Willingness To Enroll
title Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern Nigeria
title_full Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern Nigeria
title_fullStr Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern Nigeria
title_full_unstemmed Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern Nigeria
title_short Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Enrol in a Health Insurance Scheme: A Survey Among Uninsured Persons in Southern Nigeria
title_sort knowledge perception and willingness to enrol in a health insurance scheme a survey among uninsured persons in southern nigeria
topic Health Insurance
Knowledge
Out-of-Pocket Expenditure
Perception
Willingness To Enroll
url https://jmlph.net/index.php/jmlph/article/view/203
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