You want health cover, and you want a number. Here is what NHIA, the state schemes and the HMOs that publish prices charge, and what the cheap plans leave out.
When we read them in November 2026, published prices for one adult under 60 ran from ₦12,000 to ₦22,000 a year on a state scheme or NHIA’s own GIFSHIP, and from about ₦26,500 to just over ₦1 million a year on a private HMO’s retail plan. Students in tertiary institutions pay ₦2,000 a year through NHIA’s TISHIP. If you’re employed, your cover is paid as a share of your salary instead of a fixed price. Prices change often, so check with the scheme before you pay.
The prices we found
We read every figure below on the scheme’s or HMO’s own website on 7 November 2026. Private HMOs are in alphabetical order; many don’t publish retail prices at all.
| Scheme or HMO | Plan | Price | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| NHIA (federal) | GIFSHIP, individuals and families | ₦22,000 per person; families ₦66,000 to ₦198,000; plus ₦1,500 for the ID card | A year |
| NHIA (federal) | GIFSHIP, groups of 10 or more | ₦220,000 for 10 people, then ₦22,000 for each extra person | A year |
| NHIA (federal) | TISHIP, students | ₦2,000 | A year |
| Borno State (BOSCHMA) | Individual, family and group scheme | ₦12,000 per person, “subject to review” | A year |
| Ondo State (ODCHC) | ORANGHIS, informal sector | ₦18,000 (age 0 to 59); ₦36,000 (60 and over); ₦90,000 for a family | A policy year |
| AXA Mansard Health | EasyCare | ₦32,000, or ₦20,000 for six months | A year, or six months |
| HCI Healthcare | Titanium retail plans (six) | ₦50,700 to ₦950,000 per person; ₦227,500 to ₦3,600,000 per family | A year |
| Hygeia HMO | HyEase; HyBasic Individual; HyBasic Family | ₦26,515; ₦66,070; ₦746,320 | A year |
| Leadway Health | Strawberry to Raspberry (five) | ₦118,122.47 to ₦1,002,456 per person | A year |
HCI’s quote form lists lower prices than its plan table for the same plans (Titanium Compact at ₦25,000), so ask HCI which is current. Ally HMO and HCI Healthcare are the two HMOs Mytherapist.ng bills directly for therapy.
NHIA: a share of your salary, or a fixed yearly price
If you work for government. NHIA’s public-sector contribution is 15% of your basic salary: 10% from your employer and 5% from you, and some employers pay all of it. NHIA says it replaces the medical allowance. HR can tell you what’s deducted and which HMO you’re with.
If you work for a private company with five or more staff. Your employer can enrol you in NHIA’s private-sector programme, OPSSHIP, with contributions based on what you earn, or buy a private HMO plan. Ask HR for the benefit schedule.
If you’re self-employed, retired or buying for family. GIFSHIP is NHIA’s scheme for everyone else: the self-employed, small businesses with fewer than ten staff, associations and unions, retirees, foreigners living in Nigeria, and Nigerians abroad paying for relatives at home. NHIA’s GIFSHIP registration page puts the price at ₦22,000 per person a year. Its wording is muddled: it says individuals pay ₦66,000, that this is ₦22,000 each for three people, and that families pay from ₦66,000 up to ₦198,000 a year. The figure that holds throughout, groups included, is ₦22,000 a head. You register at an NHIA office or submit the forms, pay through Remita, pay ₦1,500 for the ID card, give a NIN for each person, and choose your HMO and your clinic. Confirm the total at the office before you pay.
If you’re a student. TISHIP covers students at universities, polytechnics and other tertiary institutions. NHIA’s page says you register at your school’s health centre and pay ₦2,000 each year.
NHIA’s home page says members don’t need cash for treatment except a 10% co-payment for drugs, though hospitals often charge for registration and for medicines and tests that aren’t on NHIA’s lists. On mental health, the NHIA package covers psychiatrist visits on referral and up to 21 days a year on a ward, and it doesn’t name talking therapy.
State schemes: cheaper, if you can find the price
NHIA says each of the 36 states has its own health insurance agency. A state scheme has its own benefit list, and if your card comes from a state agency, that list decides what you’re covered for. Two state agencies published a price on their own pages when we checked:
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- Ondo State’s ORANGHIS charges informal-sector members ₦18,000 per policy year up to age 59 and ₦36,000 from 60. A family plan (one principal, a spouse and up to four children under 18) is ₦90,000. Its ORANGHIS page lists medical, surgical, children’s, maternity, dental and eye care and “some rehabilitative services”, at public and private providers you choose within the state.
- Borno State’s BOSCHMA charges ₦12,000 per person a year for its individual, family and group scheme, paid in advance and “subject to review by the Agency”. Its informal sector page says members get the same benefits as the state’s formal-sector scheme.
Lagos. The Lagos State Health Management Agency runs Ilera Eko from lashma.com, which ileraeko.com redirects to. The site lists four plans (Standard Jaara, Standard Jaara Plus, Senior and Diaspora), but their prices and benefits sit in downloadable documents, so we haven’t quoted a figure. Press reports carry prices; we only print what a scheme publishes on its own pages. Ask at an Ilera Eko office or LASHMA before you pay.
Other states. Several agencies’ sites didn’t load for us, so ask your state agency’s office.
Private HMO plans: what makes one cost more
A retail plan is one you buy yourself; employers’ plans are usually priced on a quote. The retail tables show what moves the price:
- Which hospitals you can use. HMOs sort hospitals into categories. Leadway’s two lowest-priced plans open “Category D” hospitals only, and Hygeia’s HyEase and HyBasic open categories C and D. HCI’s two most expensive plans name specific private hospitals.
- The yearly limits. Every plan caps what it pays a year for hospital stays, clinic care and medicines. Hygeia’s HyEase, at ₦26,515 a year, caps hospital stays at ₦150,000 and seven days on a general ward.
- Where you’re covered. Leadway’s three dearer plans add care in India, and two of them other African countries.
- Who’s on the plan, and their age. A family plan costs several times an individual one, and “family” varies: HCI’s allows up to four children under 21, Ondo’s up to four under 18. Ondo charges twice as much from 60, and Hygeia and Leadway sell separate plans for older people.
- How you pay. AXA Mansard says its plans can be paid monthly, quarterly or yearly, and sells EasyCare for six months too.
What cheap plans usually leave out
In the cheaper plans we read:
- Waiting periods. HCI’s retail plans make you wait 12 months for chronic conditions, maternity and surgery. AXA’s EasyCare covers antenatal care and delivery up to ₦10,000, and only after up to 10 months on the scheme. Leadway’s plans don’t cover intensive care, antenatal care or psychiatry in the first policy year. Hygeia’s HyEase lists a seven-day wait.
- Scans. EasyCare covers CT and MRI scans in emergencies only.
- Mental health. Where a cheap plan covers it at all, you get psychiatry for a few weeks, with a cap and often a wait. AXA’s EasyCare lists psychiatry for up to eight weeks. Leadway’s plans list psychiatry clinic care for up to eight weeks, within the clinic limit and not in the first policy year. HCI’s Titanium Compact covers a mental health assessment and two weeks of treatment for an acute episode, up to ₦20,000 a year. Hygeia’s HyEase and HyBasic pages list no mental health cover. None of the cheaper plans we read lists talking therapy.
Many plans also exclude drug and alcohol rehab and care after self-harm or a suicide attempt. Our guide to HMOs in Nigeria sets out what twelve established HMOs say about mental health.
How to read a plan before you pay
Ask for the full benefit schedule and the exclusions list in writing, rather than the one-page summary. Then check:
- The period. Two HMO sites we read list prices without saying whether they’re per month or per year. Ask, and ask whether instalments change the total.
- That the price is current. On some sites, two pages give different prices for the same plan. Get the price in writing, with a date.
- The hospital list. Find the clinics you’d actually use, near home and work, by name.
- The limits. Look at the yearly cap for hospital stays, clinic visits and medicines, and the number of ward days.
- Waiting periods. Find out what you can’t use in the first months or the first year. Maternity, surgery, chronic conditions and mental health are the usual ones.
- The mental health line, word for word. Does it say psychiatry, counselling or therapy? For how many weeks or sessions, and with what cap?
- Accreditation. Check the HMO is on NHIA’s list of accredited HMOs, under its brand or its legal name.
Using your insurance for therapy on Mytherapist.ng
If your plan is with Ally HMO or HCI Healthcare, you can book therapy in the Mytherapist.ng app with nothing to pay. Pick a session at least 24 hours ahead, choose “My HMO” at checkout and enter the enrollee ID on your card, and the total reads ₦0. We confirm cover with your HMO, usually within a day; if it can’t confirm in time, the session is cancelled and nothing is charged. You can’t book anonymously when an HMO pays. The supported HMOs page has the current list, and our guide to HMO-covered therapy goes through the steps.
If your HMO isn’t listed, ask for it on the same page and we’ll write to them. Until then, each therapist sets their own price, shown before you pay; the range is on our pricing page. We don’t bill NHIA or state schemes.
Frequently asked questions
How much is health insurance in Nigeria per month?
Most schemes publish a yearly price. Some HMOs, such as AXA Mansard, let you pay monthly or quarterly; ask whether that changes the total. If you’re employed, NHIA’s contribution comes out of your salary each month.
How much does NHIA (NHIS) cost per year?
GIFSHIP, for people without cover through work, is ₦22,000 per person a year plus ₦1,500 for the ID card. Government employees pay 5% of basic salary and the employer 10%.
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What is the cheapest health insurance in Nigeria?
On the pages we read: TISHIP for students at ₦2,000 a year, then Borno’s scheme at ₦12,000 and Ondo’s at ₦18,000, then NHIA’s GIFSHIP at ₦22,000. Private retail plans started at about ₦26,500. A low price usually comes with low limits and long waits, so read what’s covered.
How much is Ilera Eko?
LASHMA doesn’t put its premiums on its web pages. Its four plans, Standard Jaara, Standard Jaara Plus, Senior and Diaspora, are described in downloadable documents. Ask LASHMA or an Ilera Eko office for the current price.
Does health insurance cover therapy in Nigeria?
Rarely by name. Most plans that cover mental health pay for psychiatry for a few weeks, often after a waiting period, and NHIA’s package doesn’t name talking therapy. On Mytherapist.ng, Ally HMO and HCI Healthcare plans can pay for therapy sessions, with cover confirmed before each one.
Prices read on each scheme’s or HMO’s own website on 7 November 2026. Prices change; check with the scheme before you buy.
