From today, October 20, people with Covid-19 are no longer exempted from medical examination and treatment fees.

This is the recommendation made by Professor Phan Trong Lan, Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine ( Ministry of Health ), at a press conference to provide information on the decision to adjust Covid-19 from group A infectious disease to group B organized by the Ministry of Health this afternoon, October 20.

Từ hôm nay 20.10, người mắc bệnh Covid-19 phải đeo khẩu trang 10 ngày - Ảnh 1. — Representative of the Ministry of Health informed about the decision to adjust Covid-19 from group A infectious disease to group B

Continue to maintain Covid-19 news

Explaining the scientific basis for moving Covid-19 from group A infectious disease to group B, Professor Phan Trong Lan said: "In 2023, the number of Covid-19 cases decreased 82 times compared to 2022. The mortality rate per number of cases was 0.022, nearly 100 times lower than in 2021; the causative agent SARS-CoV-2 has been identified... With the above factors, the disease is currently suitable for group B classification".

The Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine (Ministry of Health) said that despite being transferred to group B, SARS-CoV-2 continues to change, so in the future, Covid-19 still needs to be monitored on cases, and at the same time, integrated monitoring with other infectious diseases, current acute respiratory outbreaks... At the same time, the Ministry of Health will monitor genetic characteristics to monitor the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2.

Responding to the press about whether the Ministry of Health will continue to provide information on cases, Professor Phan Trong Lan said that information on cases will continue to be reported in the health system to provide and collect information, and then process the information.

"Instead of daily reports, the professional department will compile weekly, monthly, and ad hoc reports to serve the work of epidemic prevention and control. In addition, to ensure information transparency, maintaining the Covid-19 newsletter is necessary," said Mr. Lan.

There are no regulations on removing masks at medical facilities.

Regarding the necessity of wearing masks in the community when Covid-19 is transferred to group B, the Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine said that wearing masks in the current situation is encouraged to prevent respiratory diseases, not just Covid-19.

"The Ministry of Health encourages people to wear masks in public to prevent Covid-19, as well as other respiratory diseases, especially in crowded places and on public transport. For people with Covid-19, we recommend that they wear masks for 10 days from the date of onset or positive test. Those who care for infected people must also wear masks," Mr. Lan emphasized.

Also related to wearing masks in medical examination and treatment facilities, Mr. Nguyen Trong Khoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management (Ministry of Health), said that in medical examination and treatment facilities, masks should be maintained, because in addition to Covid-19, there are many other agents that can cause infectious diseases. Currently, there are no regulations on not wearing masks in medical examination and treatment facilities.

Patients are no longer exempted from Covid-19 examination and treatment fees

Regarding payment for Covid-19 treatment costs after Covid-19 became group B, Mr. Phan Van Toan, Deputy Director of the Department of Health Insurance (BHYT), said that for Covid-19 cases from October 19 and earlier, the state budget will pay.

However, from October 20, people with Covid-19 who go to the hospital for medical examination and treatment will have their medical expenses paid by the Health Insurance Fund and the patient.

In case the patient is admitted to the hospital before October 20 and discharged from October 20 or later, the Health Insurance Fund will still pay according to the principle of group A.

Mr. Khoa said: "Patients who go for examination and treatment for Covid-19 must follow the regulations, that is, if they go to the right hospital, they will be paid according to the regulations of the health insurance. If they go to the wrong hospital, they will have to pay the co-payment or pay themselves."

Regarding allowances for people participating in the fight against the epidemic after Covid-19 became a group B infectious disease, the Ministry of Health said that from today, October 20, it will not pay epidemic prevention and control allowances to people participating in the fight against the epidemic.

Regarding the Covid-19 vaccination, the representative of the Ministry of Health said that the Covid-19 vaccination needs to continue to be monitored. According to the World Health Organization, there is currently no recommendation for annual vaccination, however, based on practical factors such as new strains of Covid-19, there may be new recommendations.

From now until the end of 2023, people will still be vaccinated against Covid-19 for free.

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