The Ministry of Health is drafting a project to exempt hospital fees for all people.

(Dan Tri) - The draft project on exempting hospital fees for all people will be developed and completed in September. Currently, health insurance participants are responsible for co-paying 11-13% of the total cost of health insurance examination and treatment.

Recently, General Secretary To Lam, on behalf of the Politburo, signed and issued Resolution 72-NQ/TW on a number of breakthrough solutions to strengthen the protection, care and improvement of people's health.

The Politburo has set a target that by 2030, people will be exempted from basic hospital fees within the scope of health insurance benefits. And from 2026, people will be able to have regular health check-ups or free screening once a year.

Prof. Dr. Tran Van Thuan, Deputy Minister of Health, has just chaired a meeting with departments and divisions to deploy the general development of the Project on free hospital fees for all people. This is an important content to realize Resolution No. 72 of the Politburo on breakthroughs in public health care, meeting the requirements of national development in the new era.

Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan chaired the meeting (Photo: Tran Minh).

The draft Project on free hospitalisation for all people will be developed and completed in September. It will specifically define the objectives, scope, subjects, theoretical framework as well as experiences of several countries in the world.

According to a World Bank report, hospital and tuition fees account for 30-35% of total expenditures of poor households in Vietnam.

Meanwhile, according to statistics from the Vietnam Social Security, on average, the Health Insurance Fund (HIF) covers 87-89% of the total cost of health insurance examination and treatment, and HI participants are responsible for co-paying 11-13%. Thus, if hospital fee exemption is implemented, it will contribute to eliminating the financial burden, helping people access basic health services.

Speaking at the working session, Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan assigned the Health Insurance Department to be the focal point, connecting units to urgently complete the draft project to submit to the Ministry's leaders; advise on the establishment of a Drafting Committee, inviting experts, scientists, relevant ministries, sectors and representatives of international organizations in Vietnam.

Departments, offices, schools and staff institutes complete component reports on the practical situation of hospital fee payment, international service usage and cost models, review relevant legal regulations and report on policy impact assessment when issuing the project.

Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan affirmed that the Ministry of Health aims at the motto of caring for and protecting people's health first and foremost.

Therefore, the Ministry has been researching and developing a project according to a roadmap, each professional level, scope, and scale with the goal of gradually reducing the burden of medical costs for people, moving towards free hospital fees for all people in the period from 2030-2035 and all people have a health insurance card to access, participate in and enjoy medical examination and treatment services.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/bo-y-te-dang-xay-dung-du-thao-de-an-mien-vien-phi-toan-dan-20250913152720814.htm