National Pension Commission (PenCom) has increased the income eligibility threshold for its PenCare pilot programme, as it now allows retirees who earn monthly pensions of up to N150,000 to benefit from the free health insurance initiative, compared with the previous limit of N70,000.

The commission said the decision is aimed at expanding participation in the pilot scheme and improving access to healthcare for retirees under the contributory pension scheme (CPS).

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This is also as the commission disclosed that only eight states in the country currently operate the contributory pension scheme.

PenCom warned that workers and retirees in states yet to implement the scheme could face challenges in accessing their retirement benefits.

Speaking after the third Pension Industry Leadership Council (PILC) meeting in Abuja, Monday, PenCom Director-General, Ms Omolola Oloworaran, said the revised PenCare threshold would help the commission gather enough data to properly evaluate the programme.

Launched in March, the PenCare initiative is designed to provide free health insurance for low-income pensioners nationwide. According to Oloworaran, the pilot targets 30,000 retirees but has enrolled only about 13,000 beneficiaries, prompting the commission to widen eligibility.

She explained that retirees receiving monthly pensions of N150,000 or less are now eligible to participate in the pilot scheme, stressing that the adjustment is temporary and will be reviewed once the pilot assessment is completed.

Oloworaran noted that expanding the income limit is intended to ensure the programme reaches a sufficient number of participants to accurately test its effectiveness before nationwide implementation.

She disclosed that PenCom plans to introduce three healthcare packages after the pilot phase. The first package will continue to offer free healthcare for low-income retirees, while the second will operate on a co-payment basis for pensioners requiring additional medical support. The third package is expected to provide enhanced healthcare coverage for higher-income retirees through competitive premium payments.

On pension investments, Oloworaran said the proposed pension industry infrastructure fund has reached an advanced implementation stage. She said PenCom and pension fund administrators (PFAs) have agreed on a framework that will enable long-term pension assets to finance infrastructure development, with PFAs expected to conclude consultations with their boards and stakeholders within the next one to two months before taking a final decision.

Meanwhile, in a related development, PenCom has commenced a formal review of the Pension Reform Act 2014, which has not been amended in 12 years as the commission cited the need need to bring the legislation in line with current realities and close gaps exposed during implementation.

PenCom Director-General, Oloworaran, disclosed this, Tuesday at a press conference following the council’s third quarterly meeting, in Abuja.

Oloworaran explained that the Act, no longer adequately supports the reforms the commission is pursuing.

“The reason we are reviewing is to modernise the Act. Things continue to change, and we continue to come up with reform ideas that improve the lives of ordinary Nigerians who are part of the scheme.

“Certainly, we did have some implementation gaps in the previous Act that we’ll also try and correct in this Act,” she said, adding that all proposed amendments were designed to benefit contributors and retirees.

Beyond the legislative review, the council deliberated on a range of measures to make Nigeria’s pension industry more competitive and accessible.

These include; advancing the proposed Pension Industry Infrastructure Fund, which Oloworaran said had reached an advanced stage, and introducing a liability-driven investment framework to strengthen retirement outcomes.