Over 100,000 retired military officers in Nigeria have enrolled for the military free health insurance scheme, according to the Managing Director of Military Health Management Limited, Rear Admiral Azeez Bello Afolayan (rtd).

Afolayan made the disclosure during a one-day interactive meeting with military veterans groups at the DHML headquarters in Abuja.

He said the aim of the meeting was to enlighten veteran groups about what they stand to gain by registering with DHML, in the area of healthcare delivery.

“We are achieving this using our state offices that are spread across the country. Our staff in the office go into the remotest villages. Using the various veterans groups, they identify the veterans and educate them on why they should register with DHML and benefit from free good healthcare packages.

“From the NHIS guidelines there are diseases that are not covered, but on our own part here at DHML we try not to send any Veteran away because his or her ailment is not covered by the health insurance,” Afolayan said

Afolayan explained that what qualifies a veteran to benefit from the scheme is to formally register with DHML immediately after retiring from active military service.

He urged executives of the various veterans associations not to hold information to themselves, but to educate their members on the benefits of being part of DHML insurance scheme.

The Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, also said that the Federal Government would soon increase funding for health insurance of retired military personnel to adequately cater for their ailments after service.

He also said that plans are underway to upgrade various military health facilities to be at par with their counterparts in developed countries.

Represented by the Director, Health Services at the Ministry of Defence, Dr. Olajide Johnson, Matawalle said the government would also improve on veterans insurance health packages to include some ailments that were hitherto not included in the present package.