Transparency Blackout: The ‘Broken Links’ and Unverifiable Claims of Akwa Ibom’s Health Insurance Scheme

By PAUL UTEBOR

An examination of the Akwa Ibom State Health Insurance Services (AKSHIS) website has revealed significant gaps in publicly available information, raising questions about transparency and accessibility for prospective enrollees seeking details of healthcare coverage under the state-backed scheme.

A review of the website shows that its homepage is dominated by two large photographs of the state governor, one embedded in a rotating slider and another displayed as a prominent banner, while offering little substantive information about the agency’s operations. Unlike comparable health insurance platforms, such as that of the Lagos State Health Insurance Agency, the homepage provides no clear guidance on benefits, provider networks, or enrolment procedures.

Further down the site, the agency claims to serve over 170,000 clients, have more than 15,000 reviews, and maintain a staff strength of over 50. However, no verifiable data, documentation, or links are provided to support or explain these figures.

Efforts by this media house to identify hospitals affiliated with the scheme proved unsuccessful. Standard practice among health insurance providers typically includes a publicly accessible list of accredited hospitals and healthcare facilities. No such list was found on the AKSHIS platform. Clicking on the “Services” tab does not lead to detailed service descriptions or insurance packages but instead presents general terms such as “affordability”, “precise results”, “unmatched expertise”, “commitment”, and “high-quality insurance”.

Additional sections on the same page reference “Health Insurance”, “BHCPF Services”, and “Referral Services”, each accompanied by brief descriptions. The health insurance offering is listed at a premium of ₦18,501 per person annually, while BHCPF services are said to operate primarily at the primary healthcare level, including both rural and urban areas. Referral services are described as covering transfers to accredited secondary health providers within Akwa Ibom State. None of these sections are clickable, and no information is provided on participating hospitals, benefit limits, or service coverage.

The “Self-Enrolment” tab redirects users to a registration page requesting personal details and a choice between individual or family packages, without offering any explanatory information about what each package entails. Several links embedded within the Services page were also found to redirect users back to the same page, offering no additional clarity.

That link redirected once again to the self-enrolment page, where the requested information remained unavailable.

He stated that details regarding hospitals and packages would be sent via WhatsApp within an hour, which he did.