When transferring a patient from Vinh Long to Cho Ray Hospital, the ambulance driver charged 6 million VND. What does the transport company say about this?

Mr. T. was transferred from Vinh Long General Hospital to Cho Ray Hospital by ambulance service at a cost of 6 million VND. Considering this charge excessively high, Mr. T. complained to Tuoi Tre Online.

Huy Dat's representative office in Phuoc Hau ward ( Vinh Long ) - Photo: Xuan Lan

After reading the article "Bringing a dying mother home from the hospital, a distance of only 12km, the ambulance charged 2.4 million VND" ( Tuoi Tre Online, October 16), a reader in Vinh Long felt their own story was similar and decided to share their experience.

That is Mr. N.D.T. (69 years old, residing in Long Chau ward, Vinh Long province).

The ambulance traveled a distance of 130 km and was charged 6 million VND.

On October 20th, speaking to Tuoi Tre Online , Mr. N.D.T said that although the incident happened about a year ago, he still feels resentful whenever he remembers the cost of his hospital transfer.

"Every time I think about it, I can't sleep. Normally, transferring patients by ambulance from Vinh Long to hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City costs over 2 million VND, while hiring a private ambulance service only costs a little over 1.5 million VND."

But for some reason, for the same distance of about 130km, the ambulance that transported me charged 6 million dong.

"After making several inquiries, I finally found the hotline number of Tuoi Tre newspaper to report the incident," Mr. T explained.

Mr. T. stated that on the evening of September 29, 2024, his condition worsened, requiring him to be transferred to Cho Ray Hospital.

The payment for the ambulance was 6 million VND, and the receipt was issued by Huy Dat Multi-Specialty Clinic Co., Ltd., which has a counter located in the lobby of a hospital in Vinh Long.

"I don't understand why the receipt was from an external service provider," Mr. T wondered.

Ambulance fees have been reduced for patients' families.

On the same day, in a conversation with Mr. To Vinh Hoa, representative of the emergency operations counter of Huy Dat Multi-Specialty Clinic Co., Ltd., he stated that in 2018, Huy Dat won the bid for the emergency vehicle parking lot, with a monthly fee of 45 million VND.

"Huy Dat operates through bidding contracts, and the transportation service fees are listed based on price approvals from the Vinh Long Provincial Department of Finance," Mr. Hoa informed.

According to Mr. Hoa, when customers come to hire services, Huy Dat staff always explain and advise clearly, and only proceed with the service after the customer agrees. For cases requiring mechanical ventilation, the operations counter immediately notifies the professional manager to coordinate safe transportation. The team of doctors and nurses are all trained and professionally qualified according to regulations.

"In Mr. T.'s case, he was transferred to another hospital at night. The management clearly explained to his family the costs, including transportation fees, fees for renting a ventilator, cardiovascular monitor, suction machine, and some accompanying medical supplies to operate the machines; doctor's fees; nurse's fees..., totaling 6,715,000 VND, but we reduced the amount for the family, only charging 6 million VND," Mr. Hoa explained.

ENGRAVED IN THE HEART - NOSTALGIA

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/chuyen-vien-tu-vinh-long-len-cho-ray-xe-cap-cuu-thu-6-trieu-dong-don-vi-van-chuyen-noi-gi-20251020102641021.htm