Broken arm, got a cast under health insurance but ran out of cast, what did the hospital say?

Medical staff check medicine cabinets at a medical station in Ho Chi Minh City (Illustration photo) - Photo: XUAN MAI

I just paid for health insurance for my child. The payment is 884,552 VND/year.

According to the school's announcement, students will have to buy compulsory health insurance in 2025. Last year, my child bought compulsory health insurance for 680,400 VND.

However, what I find unreasonable and extremely worrying is that my child has to go out to buy medicine even though he is being treated at the hospital under the correct insurance policy.

Specifically, last September, my child unfortunately broke his leg. I took him to the Transport Hospital in Hanoi for examination and treatment.

After the examination and X-ray, the doctor ordered my leg to be put in a cast. However, the doctor said the hospital was out of plaster cast, so he instructed me to go to the hospital pharmacy to buy plaster cast for the doctor to put on. The reason the hospital said was that the insurance medicine was temporarily out of stock!

I think if it was a common disease with many patients, a temporary shortage of medicine would not be easy to accept. But now, plaster casts to cover patients with broken bones are no longer covered by insurance.

What is even more unusual is that the incident happened at a hospital in central Hanoi.

As health insurance buyers, we are customers. The health insurance premium has been paid for the whole year and fully paid without missing a single penny according to regulations.

Furthermore, according to the Law on Health Insurance, students are required to participate in health insurance. So why when they have to go to the hospital with the right insurance line, there is no plaster powder for treatment?

It is clear that the rights of people participating in health insurance are being affected.

Furthermore, in my child’s case, the importance of health insurance policy for students is not much anymore. Because the purpose of health insurance for students is to care for and protect the health of this group right at school.

To ensure the rights of insurance participants, I really hope to end the situation where people with health insurance have to buy medicine outside.

What does the hospital say?

Speaking to Tuoi Tre Online on the morning of October 17, the leader of the Transport Hospital said that the hospital had reviewed the hospital's equipment and supplies and affirmed that at present there is no difficulty in purchasing and bidding for drugs and supplies.

Materials in the trauma plaster cast covered by health insurance such as screws, splints, etc. ensure treatment needs.

Regarding the fact that patients had to go out to buy plaster and fiberglass powder used in casts, hospital leaders explained that at the end of August and the beginning of September, these items were being bid for, so there was a disruption.

“The doctor instructed the patient to go to the hospital pharmacy to buy it. Besides, this powder is not covered by health insurance so it does not affect the rights of health insurance participants.

Maybe the doctor did not explain, causing the patient to misunderstand," he informed.