A 5-sao* field is not affordable for a few days in hospital

(*Note: “sao” is a Vietnamese traditional measurement units. In the Northern regions, 1 sao is equivalent to 360 square metres)

Mr. Giap Van Bay’s (71 years old) house is located along a small river in Tan Trung commune, Tan Yen district, Bac Giang province. The dirt road marked with wheel tracks leads to the old 3-room small house. Sitting in the corner of the bed, Mr. Bay had difficulty telling us about his healing story.

Mr. Bay has suffered from lung disease for more than 20 years. For a long time, the Health Insurance card has become an indispensable item, sticking alongside with him whenever he goes for medical treatment, from healthcare centre at commune level to the hospital at district level. The treatment fees about several millions dong and all are covered by the Health Insurance fund.

Illustrative image (internet)

However, in the most recent time when his condition became worse, he had been hospitalized for treatment at the Provincial General Hospital for more than 3 months. “I felt very tired and had trouble breathing, so I went to the district hospital for examination. Then, I was transferred to the provincial hospital. The doctors examined my condition and decided that I had to undergo a surgery. Hearing this news, my wife and I were very worried because we knew that it would cost a large amount of money. But when the doctors told us the treatment fees would be covered by Health Insurance, we felt relieved." said Mr. Bay.

Sitting next to him, recalling that time, Mrs. Bay (a traditional way for calling married women by their husbands’ name in rural areas) said that when her husband was hospitalized and had been treated for a long time, she felt very worried because only she and her husband have been living together. Their children are all married, but they have financial difficulty and cannot help much. When her husband was hospitalized, she could only rely on the Health Insurance card. When his treatment ended, they only had to pay 5 million VND out of the total hospital fee of more than 105 million VND, it felt like her burden was relieved.

Pointing to about 10 bags of grain after Chiem crop (winter-spring crop) in the corner of the house, she shared: Due to the crop failure, this year, we only gathered nearly a quintal of grain per sao. My family planted 5 sao of grains and got about 5 quintals in total. With the current sale-price, we only get more than 3-4 million VND in case of selling out. That amount was enough for my husband's healthcare treatment fee for only a few days. I find Health Insurance to be of great value, so I pay for it every year and encourage my children and relatives to participate in Health Insurance.

As the eldest son of Mr. Bay, Mr. Giap Van Ha said that his family now has 4 members, all have participated in Health Insurance. Currently, his first son has suffered from kidney disease and has been treated at General Hospital in Tan Yen District every month. The treatment fee for this disease, which requires a long-term treatment, is quite expensive. With the participation in Health Insurance, the amount of more than 800,000 VND to pay for his children’s Health Insurance card is a fixed expense in a year.

A luggage to carry in the night

At 9:30 pm on the first day of June, Mrs. Pham Thi Hue (45 years old, Nam Thinh commune, Tien Hai district, Thai Binh province) was devastated to hear that her husband, Mr. Tran Van Hung (52 years old) had a motorbike accident on his way home. After calling her son, the only thing she could do was just getting her husband's Health Insurance card from the drawer, then going to the accident scene. When she got there, her husband was taken to a nearby hospital. However, due to his critical condition, he was transferred to General Hospital in Thai Binh Province. Parking her motorbike, she followed her husband in the ambulance. At the provincial hospital, the patient continued to be transferred to Viet Duc Hospital in Hanoi.

Therefore, a long over-night journey of a rural woman, who have never been to Hanoi, full of hurry and anxiousness, started with only a Health Insurance card and less than 10 million VND in cash alongside.

Arriving at Viet Duc hospital, the patient was immediately transferred to the emergency department, being diagnosed of skull fracture, cerebral hematoma... and was in need of urgent surgery. The surgery took more than 3 hours and finally went successfully.

Watching her husband's gradual recovery, after a week of treatment, Mrs. Hue said: When the incident happened, I was very scared and worried about my husband's health and life. When my husband survived the ordeal, I felt worried about the cost of medical treatment, medicine, food... Rumors about difficulties in procedure of Health Insurance payment, or regulations on medical examination and treatment at appropriate level also made me anxious... However, knowing that my husband's treatment fees will be paid 100% by the Health Insurance Fund due to his Veteran Health Insurance card, I gradually feel relieved.

After 2 weeks, Mr. Hung was transferred to a hospital at lower level for further treatment and monitoring. Holding the bill of more than 40 million VND to be paid by Health Insurance Fund, Mrs. Hue feels that her family was still lucky.

Mrs. Hue's house is located adjacent to the Nam Thinh groyne. The small house has withstood many storms and waves of the sea but still showed its resilience after all. However, she shared with us that when seeing her husband laying in a pool of blood on the stretcher, she thought that it would be the end for her family. Thinking about the amount of money she had to pay, she felt like there is a heavy pressure on her shoulders. In recent years, her family's financial condition has deteriorated. Two years ago, most of her family's accumulated and borrowed wealth had been wasted with the failure of clam farming. This year, the herd of swine made her become empty-handed due to the swine fever. “When I went to the hospital with my husband, I could only rely on the Health Insurance card. Indeed, it really helped my family overcome difficulties. My husband's treatment and recovery journey is still long, but I am not too worried anymore because all expenses are covered by health insurance "- Mrs. Hue confided.

Above are just 2 out of millions of cases that have benefited from participating in Health Insurance every year. The Health Insurance policy has been gradually affirming and promoting its role as one of the main pillars of the social security system, becoming an important health financing arrangements to help people suffering from sickness and accidents to not fall into poverty.

At the end of the article, I think about the image of Mr. Giap Van Bay's small house with piles and trusses made from eucalyptus and chinaberry tress in the garden. The piles and trusses have held up the house against weather fluctuations day by day. Above all, I could see that this house also has another "pillar" - the Health Insurance policy, which supported his family to overcome difficulties, strengthening the journey of disease treatment. I believe this "invisible pillar" is necessary for all families./.