Proposal to adjust medical examination services and health insurance to facilitate patients

Accordingly, voters reflected on the discrimination between medical examination and treatment services and health insurance in some large hospitals. Service examination procedures are quick and of high quality, while health insurance examination requires a long wait and is of low quality.

Regarding this issue, Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan said that according to current regulations on medical examination and health insurance, "there is no discrimination between patients using medical examination services and patients using health insurance".

Medical staff at Bach Mai Hospital guide people through the medical examination and treatment process. Photo: BVCC

However, in reality, "some hospitals, especially in specialties such as oncology, cardiology, orthopedics, obstetrics and pediatrics in big cities, are facing overload, leading to long waiting times for patients with health insurance cards."

When people go to see a doctor under health insurance at major hospitals: Viet Duc Friendship, K, Bach Mai or Cho Ray, Oncology (in Ho Chi Minh City), they still have to come early and queue from 4-5 am to get a number and ticket. The price for one health insurance examination at major hospitals under the Ministry of Health is currently more than 50,000 VND.

For those who register for medical examination services, especially those who are professors, associate professors or doctors..., the time to arrive for examination is not too early, the waiting time to be examined or to perform paraclinical indications is also faster.

Many people have health insurance cards but do not use them, accept free medical examinations, choose specialists, to get faster and better quality examinations even though it costs more money (a specialist examination costs a maximum of 500,000 VND).

The Ministry of Health regulates the uniform price of health insurance services among hospitals of the same rank nationwide, clearly stipulates the coordination, arrangement of human resources and appropriate number of examination tables to ensure the quality of medical examination. Medical examination facilities are also guided to implement solutions to improve processes and procedures to shorten the waiting time of patients.

Regarding voters' recommendations, the Ministry of Health will study and propose to competent authorities to consider and decide to ensure the rights of health insurance participants, while being suitable to actual conditions.

Source: https://kinhtedothi.vn/kien-nghi-dieu-chinh-kham-dich-vu-va-bhyt-tao-thuan-loi-cho-nguoi-benh.html