SSS shells out N60million on medical bills for staff

The State Security Service (SSS) says it has assisted some of its personnel with the sum of N60 million in the last one year to offset their medical bills.

Felix Ikumapayi, the SSS director of administration and finance stated this on Saturday in Abuja at the maiden quarterly “Health Promotion Campaign” for operatives of the service and their families.

Mr. Ikumapayi said the beneficiaries of the assistance included the “very junior to very senior officers”.

He also revealed that the DSS spent a lot of money on upgrading its medical facilities across the county to ensure the good health of its staff.

“We have also employed consultants in the five major field of medicine, namely Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Obstetricians and Gynecology, Surgery and Radiology.

“Currently we are building a Radiology Centre that will have CT Scan, Digital X-ray and MRI-Scan, among other,” said Mr. Ikumapayi

He added that the Department was collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Health, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and other relevant agencies on disease prevention for its personnel.

Maintaining that the service is taking measures not only to reduce cost of health for its men but also to address the upsurge in ill health among them as well as to prevent communicable and non communicable diseases.

Speaking at the event, Temitope Ita, wife of the Director General of the SSS, who flagged the campaign, urged the staff to take the health talk seriously.

“I implore us all to take seriously the measures and recommendations that would emanate from this programme for the overall benefit of ourselves and the service at large,”she said.