The Tinubu led government has reduced the cost of kidney dialysis from ₦50,000 to ₦12,000 per session, a 76 to 80 per cent subsidy.
This vision is focused to make dialysis more affordable for thousands of Nigerians fighting kidney-related diseases.
The hospitals that would be participating are: Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Ebute-Metta, Lagos, Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi, Abuja, and the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan.
Others include, Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Owerri, University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH), as well as the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Abeokuta. Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Lagos, Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Azare, and the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin will also be involved in this experiment
They also include: University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Calabar as well as the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH), Bauchi.
The program is part of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which is aimed to ensure Nigerians have access to affordable healthcare.
In Kano State, Mr Tinubu’s 80 per cent dialysis subsidy has led to a significant increase in patient attendance at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH), Kano.
The intervention, in accordance with the Renewed Hope Agenda, has cut the cost of dialysis from between N50,000 and N60,000 per session to N12,000, as long as it provide relief to indigent kidney patients.
While speaking on the development, the Deputy Director of Nursing Services at AKTH, Tijjani Rahim, who is also the Head of the Dialysis Unit, said the unit now attends to between 22 and 25 patients daily.
During a visit to the AKTH Dialysis Centre, some patients expressed gratitude for the intervention, tagging it as life-saving.
Sani Musa, who was a patient recollected paying between N54,000 and N60,000 per dialysis session before the subsidy.
He said the cost was later reduced to N20,000 and now stands at N12,000.
Similarly, A lady called Hafiza Isa has a similar experience, she confirmed that she previously paid N60,000, then N55,000, N45,000, and later N20,000 before the current rate was established
The patients, however, appealed to the federal government to consider making dialysis treatment entirely free to further ease their burden.
Also speaking, the Chief Medical Director of AKTH, Abdurrahman Sheshe, said the subsidised dialysis programme had commenced at the hospital.
According to him, the hospital has received consumables to cater for 1,000 dialysis sessions under the initiative.
Mr Sheshe spoke during the launch of the National Emergency Medical Services and Ambulance Scheme (NEMSAS) at the hospital.
He explained that the NEMSAS programme would provide 48 hours of free medical care and emergency transportation for pregnant women, children, accident victims, and other critical cases.
He appealed to the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare and philanthropists for support to sustain the programmes.
The dialysis subsidy is part of the federal government’s broader health sector reforms, which also include the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF) and NEMSAS.
It is aimed at strengthening emergency response and reducing the financial burden on patients.
NAN reports that on 21 August 2025, the federal government approved the dialysis subsidy scheme for 11 federal tertiary health institutions across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.
