Will amend the Law on Health Insurance to move towards free medical examination and treatment

Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan announced the above information at the workshop "Further improving patient rights in diagnosis and treatment" organized by the Ministry of Health and Tien Phong Newspaper on the morning of May 8.

According to Deputy Minister Thuan, one of the major breakthrough orientations recently emphasized by General Secretary To Lam is: "Strive for each citizen to have a periodic health check-up at least once a year and move towards free hospital fees for all people". The health sector has determined that the roadmap for 2026-2030 and 2031-2035 will focus on synchronously implementing key tasks to gradually realize these two major policies.

Specifically, from 2026 to 2030, the health sector aims to have 90% of people have full access to disease prevention services, increase the health insurance coverage rate to 100%, ensure 100% of people have annual health check-ups; at the same time, develop electronic health records for lifelong management. The rate of direct payment from people for health services will decrease to below 20%; co-payments for health insurance examination and treatment will decrease to below 10%.

In the period from 2031-2035, the Ministry of Health will continue to perfect the legal framework, gradually implementing the policy of free health care for all people. The goal by 2045 is that people will no longer have to pay extra when using health insurance examination and treatment services, making Vietnam one of the leading countries in ensuring health security.

Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan speaks at the conference. Photo: Thai Ha

However, experts say that exempting hospital fees requires a roadmap and specific guidelines. Dr. Tran Chi Cuong, Director of SIS Can Tho Hospital, said that "free" needs to clarify the scope and applicable subjects.

"Free here means that a patient who is admitted to the hospital and then finishes treatment does not have to pay anything or is only partially free," he said, adding that currently stroke, cardiovascular disease, and cancer are three dangerous diseases. Stroke is the leading cause of death. Insurance coverage for stroke is very high, each case is up to hundreds of millions of dong. Therefore, if you want to reduce costs and aim for free hospital fees, the solution is to take preventive measures to reduce illness.

Associate Professor, Dr. Pham Ngoc Dong, Director of the Central Eye Hospital, also noted that although people do not have to pay for medical examinations, other financial resources are still needed to cover this cost. Currently, over 90% of the Vietnamese population has participated in health insurance, but completely free medical examination and treatment services are still not possible, while life insurance allows buyers to receive all services free of charge.

According to Mr. Dong, the basic difference between health insurance and life insurance is the premium level. Currently, the basic salary in Vietnam is still low, leading to the amount of health insurance premiums being limited compared to the actual payment needs. He raised the issue of whether it is necessary to switch to paying health insurance based on income instead of basic salary. Because in the context of equipment and medicine prices being mainly imported at international prices, but the insurance premium level is still calculated based on income in Vietnam, leading to the risk of fund imbalance.

If the health insurance contribution rate is adjusted as a percentage of income, the insurance fund will have stronger resources, expanding the ability to pay for patients, Mr. Dong expressed, adding that the amendment of the Health Insurance Law needs to pay special attention to the payment method as well as develop additional insurance types suitable for practice.

According to MSc. Hoang Trung Tuan, Deputy Director of the Department of Health Insurance, by the end of 2024, the rate of people participating in health insurance in Vietnam will reach 94.2%. Vulnerable groups such as poor households and children under 6 years old will receive full or partial support from the State for their contributions, while workers and retirees will pay according to a percentage of their salary or the basic salary.

With the current contribution level, the health insurance fund remains balanced. However, expanding benefits, increasing payments and adjusting service prices requires the health sector to flexibly research the contribution level, ensuring it is commensurate with the payment capacity of each target group and the State budget.

Source: https://baohatinh.vn/se-sua-luat-bhyt-tien-toi-kham-chua-benh-mien-phi-post287425.html