House of Representatives on Tuesday called on the federal government to urgently develop a national plan on Sickle Cell as well as introduce a policy for subsidising the costs of treating patients with Sickle Cell anaemia.
The House resolution followed a motion sponsored by Hon. Saheed Fijabi on the ‘Urgent Need to Develop a National Plan on Sickle Cell’.
In his lead debate, Fijabi said that Nigeria had a record of over five million citizens living with Sickle Cell, which is a disorder of the blood caused by an inherited abnormal haemoglobin.
He lamented that the rampaging disorder had remained intractable as a result of high rate of illiteracy, especially in the rural communities.
The lawmaker called for more support for the Sickle Cell Foundation of Nigeria, which was established in Lagos for the purposes of educating the public on the disease and assisting patients with care and treatment.
Fijabi hinted that a successful treatment of the disease was carried out at the University College Hospital, UCH, Ibadan through bone marrow transplant, saying it was successful and less risky.
In his contribution, Hon. Herman Hembe reiterated the need for proper check of genotype before marriage and proper care extended to the pregnant mother when the genotype of the baby is detected.
He called for further professional management of the crises so that patient could live normal life.
Meanwhile, the lawmakers have also called for ban on the hawking of drugs in market places, motor parks and public places.
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Source:: Nigerian Pilot
