Overview image of the National Assembly session on June 10. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

This is the goal emphasized by the Drafting Committee when submitting the draft Law on Medical Examination and Treatment (amended) at the 3rd session of the 15th National Assembly.

According to the drafting board, the law project is built in the direction of "taking the patient at the center" through simultaneously stipulating solutions to improve practice skills and strengthen the management of practitioners' activities; improving service delivery quality of medical treatment facilities, enhancing people's access to services with medical examination and treatment services, and at the same time strengthening decentralization and reform of administrative procedures in medical examination and treatment.

The issue of competence to issue practice licenses and the use of languages in medical examination and treatment by foreigners and Vietnamese residing abroad in Vietnam are contents bearing different opinions that the Government consults the National Assembly.

Regarding the authority to issue a practicing license, the Government's Report offers two options:

Option 1: Assign the National Medical Council to grant and revoke the practice license.

Option 2: Assign the National Medical Council to examine and evaluate the medical examination and treatment practice capacity of the applicant for a practice license and assign the state management agencies (the Ministry of Health, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Public Security, or the Department of Health) based on the results of the examination and assessment of medical treatment practice capacity as well as the conditions of health and not falling into the prohibited cases to perform license to practice.

The National Assembly's Committee on Social Affairs, which examines the law project, believes that, under Option 1, the National Medical Council grants and revokes a practicing license, that is, functions as a state management agency. In the management of medical examination and treatment practice, while the legal status of this organization is unknown, it is not clear how to organize the examination and assessment of medical examination and treatment practice capacity.

There were opinions in the Committee that this content should not be included in the draft Law but should be 'Pilot assigned to an independent agency to issue practice certificates' and summarized as a basis for legalization.

The Committee on Social Affairs came to an agreement with Option 2, whereby the National Medical Council conducts an examination and assessment of the medical examination and treatment practice capacity of the applicant for a practice license and the state management agencies (Ministry of Health, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Public Security, or Department of Health) based on assessment results as well as other conditions to grant a practicing license as such regulations reported to be appropriate and ensure feasibility in the current context.

Regarding the use of language in medical examination and treatment by foreigners and Vietnamese living abroad (Article 24), the report also offers two options.

Some opinions in the Committee agree with option 1, whereby medical examination and treatment practitioners must know Vietnamese fluently and do not use interpreters when practicing, except in some special cases. However, the verifying agency proposes to clearly define the criteria of "knowing Vietnamese fluently" and "mother tongue"; to study and stipulate a roadmap to meet the conditions for using Vietnamese fluently for foreigners applying for a new practice license to ensure equality among practitioners.

Many opinions in the Committee agree with option 2, which is to keep current regulations. Accordingly, those who do not know Vietnamese fluently must register the language to be used and have an interpreter to limit the impact on human resources of medical examination and treatment establishments that are employing foreigners. The verifying agency said that, in order to overcome the current shortcomings, it is necessary to determine the legal responsibilities of the interpreter, improve the quality of this team, and at the same time, strengthen inspection and examination.

Agreeing on the necessity of promulgating the Law on Examination and Treatment (amended), however, the National Assembly Committee for Social Affairs proposed the Government continue to review and supplement the impact assessment on the contents that are revised or repealed compared to the current Law; fully review and evaluate administrative procedures for each affected object; fully, deeply and more specifically institutionalize the views, guidelines and lines of the Party in the field of people's health care./.