Kinship, a home-care agency, or an HMO: what you get from each
An HMO plan pays for treatment at network hospitals; a home-care agency puts a carer or nurse in the house; a Kinship Plan combines health benefits, nurse visits, a named Kinkeeper and an app in the member's name, paid for by whoever chips in. Most families arranging care from abroad end up needing the first two together, which is what the third is.
By Kinship · Updated 19 September 2026 · 6 min read · Information, not advice.
What each one is
- An HMO plan: an annual contract with a health maintenance organisation. The member shows a card at a network hospital, the hospital gets an authorisation code, and treatment within the plan's limits is paid. Nobody visits, nobody reports back. Individual plans in Lagos ran from about N24,000 to over N700,000 a year in 2025 and 2026.
- A home-care agency: a caregiver (about N119,000 to N159,000 a month in Lagos, 2026) or a registered nurse (about N219,000 to N259,000 a month) in the home, daily or live-in. Hands-on help; no health benefits, so hospital bills are still cash.
- A Kinship Plan: Kinship Well (health benefits in Nigeria in the member's name, with a doctor to talk to, from £39 a month), Kinship Visits (a qualified nurse at home one, two or four times a month, from £60), a named Kinkeeper who reviews every visit report, and Kemi in the app. Several people can chip in to one plan.
Where each one is strong
- HMO: the cheapest way to make a hospital visit affordable. Best for someone well enough not to need anyone at home, in a city with a good network.
- Agency: the only option for someone who needs help every day with washing, meals or moving, or clinical care at home. Best chosen by a family member in person.
- Kinship: for the far larger group in between: someone managing, with a condition or with age, whose family abroad wants treatment paid for and a qualified person checking in and reporting back. The plan sits in their name and the family sees the same updates.
Where each one falls short
- HMO: limits can be exhausted by one admission on basic tiers; waiting periods of 3 to 12 months for surgery and chronic care; delayed authorisation codes are the most common complaint; many Lagos hospitals still ask for a cash deposit on admission.
- Agency: no benefits, so an emergency is still a cash call; quality depends entirely on the individual sent; the family hears what the carer chooses to tell them.
- Kinship: visits are scheduled support, not daily care or clinical procedures; Kinship Visits are in Lagos today; health benefits carry the provider's own limits, given to the member on enrolment.
Questions to ask any of the three
- Who exactly turns up, what are their qualifications, and who checks their work?
- What are the annual limits, in naira, and the waiting periods?
- How does the family abroad find out what happened, and how soon?
- What happens in an emergency at 2am, and who pays the deposit?
- Can several relatives share the cost without one of them collecting from the others?
Who we help
Start with your situation and see how the plan applies to it.
Who we helpRelated
Sources
- HMO plan prices 2025 (Nairametrics)
- Lagos HMO comparison and hospital deposits (lagos.cool, May 2026)
- Hygeia individual plan schedule: limits and waits (2025)
- NHIA 2024 complaints report (Guardian Nigeria)
- Caregiver and nurse agency rates, Lagos 2026 (Rockgarden)
- The Kinship Plan, live prices
Prices in naira are quoted with their date because they move. Nothing on this page recommends a named provider.
This page is information, not advice. Kinship wrote it from the sources listed above and checked it on the date shown. It is not medical, legal, financial or insurance advice, and it does not take account of any one person's circumstances. Decisions about treatment belong with the person and their doctor; decisions about money, insurance or immigration with the person and a qualified adviser. Our platform terms apply.