Unifying medical examination and treatment prices at public health facilities: Ensuring fairness for people

The People's Council of Ho Chi Minh City has just passed Resolution No. 399 NQ-HĐND (Resolution 399 for short) on unifying prices for medical examination and treatment services at public health facilities. The decision aims to reduce the difference in medical costs between health facilities, and improve transparency and fairness in people's access to health care services.

No more worrying about "different prices everywhere"

After the reorganization and merger of administrative units, many medical facilities in Ho Chi Minh City have different prices for medical examination and treatment. People in different areas have to pay different fees for the same service, leading to a lack of uniformity, causing confusion for people, and creating pressure in health insurance (HI) payments. According to health experts, the passing of Resolution 399, with clear regulations on the list of services, techniques, hospital bed days and uniformly applied prices, has resolved existing problems.

Doctors at Vung Tau General Hospital examine a patient. Photo: KHÁNH CHI

When people come to see a doctor or receive treatment at a public hospital, they will no longer have to worry about "different prices in different places". In particular, synchronizing medical examination and treatment prices between facilities of the same rank helps health insurance manage effectively, reduce losses, and ensure fund balance to better care for patients. When public health service prices are public and transparent, people can clearly know their rights and responsibilities. This is also an important basis for the health sector to strengthen discipline in management, prevent illegal collection, and create social trust in the public health system.

Dr. Lam Tuan Tu, Director of Vung Tau General Hospital, said that Resolution 399 has contributed significantly to creating a transparent and fair medical examination and treatment environment, with good cost control; helping patients easily choose the type of treatment that suits their financial ability by choosing between regular medical examination or on-demand medical examination, and can easily access high-quality medical services. Patients will know exactly the costs they need to pay, limit unreasonable additional fees, thereby ensuring the legitimate rights of patients.

“Currently, the hospital has reviewed and updated the prices of medical examination and treatment services according to Resolution 399 and issued procedures for managing prices of medical examination and treatment services to ensure compliance with the collection levels prescribed by this resolution. At the same time, the hospital has notified medical staff, patients and people to clearly understand the information, minimizing misunderstandings or negative reactions from people,” said Dr. Lam Tuan Tu.

Expectations to improve service quality

According to Dr. Diep Bao Tuan, Director of Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital, the new price reflects the actual cost relatively closely, thereby creating conditions for medical facilities to reinvest, improve facilities, and enhance professional capacity. Along with price adjustments, the quality of medical examination and treatment services and the service spirit of the medical team will be increasingly improved, meeting the growing and diverse needs of society. Resolution 399 not only unifies prices, but also demonstrates the city's responsibility in protecting the legitimate rights of the people, especially the vulnerable groups who depend heavily on health insurance.

When prices are unified, people will no longer have to choose hospitals based on cost, but can focus on service quality. This is an important factor to create fairness and also motivates hospitals to improve their professional qualifications. In addition, transparency and uniform prices help increase monitoring efficiency, limiting overcharging. Social insurance agencies will also have more favorable payment conditions, contributing to strengthening the sustainability of the health insurance fund - the main pillar of social security policy.

Resolution 399 unifies the prices of 10,649 technical medical examination and treatment services, including medical examination and consultation prices; bed-day service prices; technical and testing service prices; technical service prices performed by anesthesia, not including the cost of drugs and oxygen used for the service. In particular, the price of health insurance examination ranges from 36,500-50,600 VND/time; consultation for difficult cases: 200,000 VND/case; health examination for workers and drivers: 160,000 VND/time... Bed-day prices range from 156,300 VND/day to the highest 928,100 VND/day in intensive care, organ transplant, and bone marrow transplant departments.

Similarly, Dr. Duong Thanh, Director of Ba Ria Hospital, said that the unification and publicization of medical examination and treatment prices at medical facilities managed by Ho Chi Minh City after completing the administrative unit arrangement is a necessary and timely task, helping medical facilities to conveniently collect fees when performing medical examination and treatment services; at the same time, creating a comfortable and proactive mentality for people when examining and treating diseases. In particular, the price stipulated in Resolution 399 is unchanged compared to the previous level of Ba Ria - Vung Tau province (before), which will create social stability, when medical expenses do not increase after the administrative unit rearrangement. This is what people want.

Sharing the same view, Dr. Nguyen Khac Vui, Director of Binh Phu General Hospital, said that in the context of high patient pressure in Ho Chi Minh City, Resolution 399 is an important step for the city to ensure fairness in costs and encourage public hospitals to review and standardize operations. People will have access to quality medical services without worrying about fee differences. Therefore, Resolution 399 is considered a comprehensive standardization step, both removing immediate obstacles and laying the foundation for the sustainable development roadmap of the Ho Chi Minh City health system - the largest health center in the country.

KHANH CHI - THANH AN

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/thong-nhat-gia-kham-benh-chua-benh-tai-cac-co-so-y-te-cong-lap-dam-bao-cong-bang-cho-nguoi-dan-post813167.html