The Nigerian Bar Association has concluded a Memorandum
of Understanding with the Lead way Assurance Plc to take care of the welfare of
members with regards to insurance cover, specifically for financial members of
the bar. This was made known to the legal community in a statement signed by Dr. Rapulu Nduka, the Publicity Secretary of the NBA.
In a cover statement which follows the GUIDELINES
FOR THE SELECTION OF ONE THOUSAND (1000) BENEFICIARIES OF THE NBA-NATIONAL
HEALTH INSURANCE (NBA-NHIS) PILOT SCHEME NBA-NHIS PILOT SCHEME, it was stated under the MOU, all
lawyers who paid their BPF on or before 31st March 2021 can (at no extra cost
to them) have access to the following: N2Million as Life Insurance cover
(this is a 100% increase from what used to be N1Million);
N1Million for any
ailment that qualifies as Critical Illness under the policy (with a further
N1Millon payable if the member unfortunately passes);
N1Million for Accidental
Permanent Disability (with a further N1Millon if the member unfortunately
passes);
N60,000 to cover any
medical expenses related to accidents; and Free telemedicine access
for lawyers with medical doctors approved by Leadway.
“Separately, the leadership of the NBA has advanced its
negotiations with the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), to provide
insurance cover at discounted rates, for members of the Association who
subscribe to the scheme. To kickstart the NBA-NHIS Health Insurance Scheme, the
NBA will, as a part of the pilot phase, be paying the health insurance premium
for 1,000 lawyers selected from all branches of the NBA by a team led by the
Chairperson of each Branch,” the statement reads.
See below the guideline:
GUIDELINES FOR THE
SELECTION OF ONE THOUSAND (1000) BENEFICIARIES OF THE NBA-NATIONAL HEALTH
INSURANCE (NBA-NHIS) PILOT SCHEME NBA-NHIS PILOT SCHEME
In line with Section 3(12)
and (13) of the NBA Constitution and further to the NBA President’s agenda to
improve access to healthcare for its members, the NBA is proud to introduce the
NBA-NHIS Pilot Scheme (The Scheme) The Scheme seeks to provide free health
insurance to one thousand (1000) financial members of the Association, for a
period of one year, as a prelude to the subsequent enrolment of all members of
the Association into the NHIS at special concessionary rates.
NOMINATION All Branches
of the NBA are entitled to nominate four (4) members, who meet the eligibility
criteria prescribed by the NBA, to participate in the Pilot Scheme. Of these
four beneficiaries: two (2) shall be young lawyers between 1-7 years post call
(and shall not be over 30 years of age) and two (2) shall be senior lawyers who
are 60 years of age and above.
BRANCH SELECTION
COMMITTEE
All branches are
required to constitute a Branch Selection Committee comprising of the following
members: (a) Branch Chairman (Chair of the Committee) (b) Welfare Secretary
(Secretary of the Committee) (c) A nominee of the NBA President The Branch
Selection Committee shall be responsible for nominating beneficiaries under the
Scheme who meet the eligibility criteria prescribed below.
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
In selecting the beneficiaries
of the Scheme each branch must ensure that the individual meets the criteria
stipulated below: 1. He/She must have paid his/her Bar Practicing Fee and
Branch Dues for the year 2021; 2. He/She must be acknowledged by the branch as
a member who is unable to afford medical insurance; 3. He/She must be in good
standing with the Association; and 4. He/She must furnish the branch with
his/her blood group and genotype. ADDITIONAL BENEFICIARIES Branches with
membership strength of 500 and above are entitled to nominate additional
beneficiaries as indicated in the table below:
|
Size
of Branch |
500+ |
1000+ |
1500+ |
2000+ |
2500+ |
3000+ |
3500+ |
4000+ |
4500+ |
5000+ |
|
Additional
Beneficiaries |
2 |
4 |
6 |
8 |
10 |
12 |
14 |
16 |
18 |
20 |
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION
The Branch Selection Committee must submit the details of the beneficiaries, in
the prescribed format as contained in Schedule 1 (Branch Nominee Submission
Form) below, and all supporting documents to Ezekiel David on or before the 4th
of May 2021 at [email protected].
DISQUALIFICATION:
The following will
result in the immediate disqualification of a nominated beneficiary: (a) Failure
by the member to meet the eligibility criteria specified above; (b)Failure by
the Branch Selection Committee to submit the branch nominee submission form on
or before the stipulated deadline; and (c)Failure by the Branch Selection
Committee to properly execute the branch nominee submission form. In the event
of a disqualification as a result of the occurrence of any or all of the
aforementioned events, the affected Branch shall lose the opportunity of
selecting any other beneficiary and the National Secretariat shall nominate a
beneficiary to fill the resultant vacancy.
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