Health inflation hits 30.35% in January 2026 despite easing all-item rate

2026-02-24 09:23:20

Health inflation rose to 30.35% in January 2026, even as Nigeria’s broader inflation rate continued to moderate, according to the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

The CPI report shows that headline inflation eased to 15.10% year-on-year in January 2026, slightly down from 15.15% in December 2025 and sharply lower than the 27.61% recorded in January 2025.

In contrast, health inflation accelerated from 20.09% in January 2025 to 30.35% a year later.

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This surge occurred despite the Federal Government’s plans to reduce Nigerians’ out-of-pocket healthcare spending from 70% to 20% in a bid to ease the financial burden on households and expand access to quality health services.

What the data shows

While the general price level showed signs of cooling, healthcare costs remained elevated.

The all-items index increased from 110.7 points in January 2025 to 127.4 points in January 2026, translating to a 15.10% annual inflation rate.

Over the same period, the health index surged from 109.4 points to 142.6 points, reflecting a 30.35% year-on-year rise.
This means healthcare inflation was more than twice the headline rate, highlighting the disproportionate burden of medical expenses on households.
Data from the NBS show that health prices climbed steadily throughout 2025. The index rose from 111.1 points in February to 122.4 in March and 126.2 in April.
By July, it had increased to 129.9 points and further to 135.3 in August. It reached 142.3 in November, edged up to 142.4 in December, and rose slightly again to 142.6 in January 2026.
In contrast, food inflation slowed significantly to 8.89% year-on-year in January 2026, down from 29.63% a year earlier. Core inflation also declined to 17.72% from 25.27% in January 2025.

On a month-on-month basis, headline inflation stood at -2.88% in January 2026, indicating that average prices fell compared to December.

However, this broad moderation did not extend to the health division.

The health segment contributed 0.91 percentage points to the overall inflation rate in January 2026.

With a weight of 6.06 in the CPI basket, sustained increases in healthcare prices have a meaningful impact on consumer spending patterns.

Health services are classified under the broader services index, which recorded a 22.17% year-on-year increase in January 2026, compared to goods inflation of 11.03%.

What you should know

The continued rise in medical costs suggests lingering structural pressures in the sector, including higher import costs for pharmaceuticals, increased energy expenses for healthcare facilities, and exchange rate pass-through effects on medical equipment and supplies.

Nairametrics earlier reported that escalating costs of drugs and hospital consumables have reshaped Nigeria’s healthcare financing landscape, forcing hospitals to raise service tariffs and compelling Health Maintenance Organisations (HMOs) to increase premiums significantly.

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