From the use of chip-based citizen identification cards, VNeID electronic identification application, and the VssID to the deployment of electronic medical records, electronic health books, and the electronic HI review system, these technological platforms are gradually shaping a modern, transparent, and efficient digital health ecosystem toward protecting and improving public health.

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From major policy directions to concrete actions

Throughout the country’s development process, the Party and the State have consistently affirmed that health is the most valuable asset of every individual and society. Protecting, caring for, and improving people’s health is both a goal and a development force. Therefore, digital transformation in the healthcare sector, particularly HI examination and treatment, has emerged as a strategic direction that not only modernizes management methods but also directly improves service quality and expands people’s access to quality healthcare services.

Resolution No. 72-NQ/TW dated September 9, 2025 was issued by the Politburo on breakthrough solutions to strengthen the protection, care, and improvement of public health, emphasized the need for strong innovation in healthcare governance thinking and accelerating the development and effective use of health data, with people at the center and public satisfaction as a key measure.

Directive No. 52-CT/TW dated October 3, 2025 issued by the Secretariat on implementing universal HI in the new stage, requires stronger application of digital technology in managing, organizing, and paying HI examination and treatment, considering it an important solution to improve both quality and equity in the healthcare system.

To ensure that digital transformation advances in depth, the institutional and policy framework has also been finalized. In 2025, a significant milestone was the issuance of Decree No. 102/2025/ND-CP on health data management, which took effect on July 1, 2025. The decree establishes an important legal framework for the governance, use, and sharing of health data in a secure and responsible manner, ensuring privacy and information security.

In addition, Circular No. 13/2025/TT-BYT issued by the Ministry of Health on guiding the implementation of electronic medical records has provided both legal and technical foundations for healthcare facilities to gradually replace paper-based records toward a modern, integrated, and synchronized health information management system.

The Law on amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Health Insurance (Law No. 51/2024/QH15), effective from July 1, 2025, also introduced several new mechanisms to promote digital transformation in the HI, particularly sharing medical examination and treatment (MET) data and enabling the interoperability of paraclinical test results, modernizing management, reviewing and paying HI examination and treatment premiums.

Data as the foundation, people as the ultimate goal

Under the Government’s direction in line with Project 06 on developing applications of population data, electronic identification, and authentication for national digital transformation for the period 2022–2025, with a vision to 2030, the Health sector and VSS have gradually built digital data platforms for healthcare management and service delivery.

Directive No. 07/CT-TTg dated March 14, 2025 issued by the Prime Minister on implementing electronic medical records and nationwide interoperability of medical data has created strong motivation for digital transformation across the healthcare system.

By early 2026, many key indicators have moved from the “pilot” phase to “universal deployment.” According to the Ministry of Health, over 34 million electronic health books have been integrated into the VNeID application, allowing citizens to conveniently search their medical history, test results, and treatment processes.

At the same time, about 1,210 out of the country’s 1,650 public and private hospitals have announced the implementation of electronic medical records, gradually replacing traditional paper-based records.

Alongside the digitization of medical records, the electronic HI review system operated by VSS has become a key platform for managing medical examination and treatment expenditure. To date, the system has been connected with 100% of HI examination and treatment facilities nationwide, receives and processes billions of medical examination and treatment data every year, helping control costs, limit fraud against the HI fund, and ensure the rights of participants.

These data platforms create favorable conditions toward the goal of life-cycle universal health management. They enable doctors to access more comprehensive information for accurate diagnosis while reducing duplicate tests, saving costs for patients and the HI fund.

Simplifying procedures and expanding access to HI benefit

One of the most visible impacts of digital transformation in HI is the simplification of administrative procedures and the shortening of the medical examination and treatment process.

With the approach of placing “citizens and businesses at the center of service delivery”, Vietnam Social Security (VSS) has strengthened data connectivity with the National Population Database, enabling citizens to use chip-based citizen ID cards, the VNeID application, or the VssID app instead of paper HI cards for medical services.

Currently, 100% of HI examination and treatment facilities nationwide receive patients using chip-based citizen ID cards,  allowing HI information to be retrieved through the personal ID number.

Beyond data authentication, the connectivity across the healthcare system’s digital infrastructure has also improved significantly. According to a report presented at the 2025 conference reviewing the use of population data for socio-economic development, 12,455 healthcare facilities nationwide have allowed chip-based citizen ID cards to replace paper HI cards. Around 2.5 million electronic medical records have been created, and 373 medical facilities now share data through the national health data coordination platform.

Real-time interoperability and verification of patient information have helped strictly control the process of  HI examination and treatment, reducing fraud against the fund such as duplicate card use or incorrect  beneficiary. As a result, the loss rate of the HI fund has decreased by about 2–3% annually, equivalent to savings of VND 500 billion to VND 1 trillion each year, contributing to more effective fund management and better protection of participants’ rights.

According to VSS, by the end of 2025, more than 100.2 million citizen records had been verified with the National Population Database. Of these, 99.59 million people participating and benefiting from SI, HI, and UI had been successfully identified and authenticated, reaching 99.6%. The proportion of HI participants whose citizen ID information matched the population database reached 99.43%.

This forms an essential foundation for unified and accurate management; reducing confusion, duplication, and fraud in policy benefits. When digital identity and HI entitlement are linked within a standardized data system, processing benefits, medical admission procedures, medical review and payment of healthcare costs become more transparent than before.

The HI examination and treatment data system is also being increasingly interconnected. VSS has coordinated the implementation of electronic health books, referral letters, and  follow-up appointment notices, with 578 million medical examination and treatment data records transmitted from healthcare facilities to the HI medical review system.

From the HI policy perspective, the greatest value of digital transformation lies in allowing “data to solve problem instead of people”. When data is synchronized, patients no longer need to present and verify multiple documents; healthcare facilities reduce manual administrative tasks; and VSS gains better tools to monitor, analyze, and  pay premiums based on real-time data. Therefore, reform of administrative procedure  is no longer limited to reducing paperwork but also fundamentally changes how benefits are verified and delivered. This marks an important shift from “record management” to “data governance.”

Responding to voters’ recommendations from Đồng Tháp Province at the 10th session of the 15th National Assembly, Minister of Health Đào Hồng Lan said the Ministry of Health had coordinated with the Ministry of Public Security and VSS to deploy strong digital transformation measures in HI. Since 2023, patients have been able to use chip-based citizen ID cards, VNeID, or VssID instead of paper HI cards when receiving medical services. In 2024, electronic referral letters and follow-up appointment slips integrated into VNeID continued to be piloted. This shows that digital transformation in HI is no longer a long-term orientation but has been embedded into every step of the MET process.

More broadly, digital transformation is also changing how the healthcare system perceives patients. Previously, a single medical visit might be treated as a separate interaction, but electronic health records and electronic medical records are now enabling life-cycle health management. With a continuous digital record, doctors have more data to evaluate medical history, monitor disease progression, avoid duplicate tests, and improve treatment accuracy.

For regulatory authorities, the large data repositories generated from HI examination and treatment help to analyze disease trends, forecast service demand, and allocate resources more effectively.

Initial outcomes of digital transformation are also reflected in public satisfaction with services provided by VSS. According to VSS, the satisfaction index in 2025 reached 89.5%, up 2.03% points compared to 2024, exceeding the set target.

These early results demonstrate that digital transformation in health insurance examination and treatment is not only a technological change but also an important shift in governance thinking and service delivery. As data is interconnected, processes are digitalized, and services are designed for citizen’s convenience, the healthcare system will move closer to the goal of building a modern, equitable, and efficient healthcare system for the entire population’s health.