Adeleke flags off free health insurance for Osun inmates

By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has launched the enrollment of inmates across correctional facilities in the state into the Osun Health Insurance Scheme (OHIS).

Speaking at the Ilesa Medium Correctional Centre of the Nigeria Correctional Service, Adeleke described inmates as bona fide citizens who must not be denied access to healthcare and other benefits of democracy.

“We regard inmates in our correctional facilities as bona fide citizens of this state and of our country. Their healthcare and general wellbeing must remain a priority. Our administration does not discriminate on any basis—whether political affiliation, tribe, religion, or gender—in extending dividends of democracy to all citizens and residents of Osun State,” he said.

Adeleke recalled that over 26,000 pensioners and thousands of persons with disabilities had already been enrolled into OHIS, while many were also provided with motorised wheelchairs, crutches, walking sticks, visual aids, and hearing aids to improve their quality of life.

He added that more than 450,000 pupils in public schools underwent free eye screening, with 43,000 receiving corrective glasses, while others benefitted from medications or surgeries at no cost. This, he noted, significantly reduced the financial burden on parents and guardians.

The Governor attributed the success of these programmes, despite limited resources, to transparency, priority-based spending, increased internally generated revenue, and prudent management of special project accounts.

Reacting to the development, the State Controller of Corrections, Olalekan Rotimi Oluwadele, commended the Governor for approving the enrollment of 1,200 inmates into OHIS and for his continuous support to the correctional service.

For his part, the Special Adviser on Public Health, Dr. Adekunle Akindele, praised Adeleke as a “trailblazer” whose initiatives, including the enrollment of pensioners into health insurance and renovation of primary healthcare centres, had been adopted by the Federal Government.