Deputy General Director of the Vietnam Social Security Pham Luong Son said thanks to participation and having health insurance cards, dozens of people across the country had overcome difficult periods when they faced health troubles.

As calculated, the health insurance fund had paid examination and treatment expenses for thousands of people, including 58 people, with medical expenses of over VNĐ1 billion (US$43,300) each; and 12 people, with medical expenses of over VNĐ2 billion ($86,600) each, since 2019 so far, he said.

In recent years, thanks to policy adjustments, owners of health insurance cards could access a lot of advanced medical services.

At present, most medicines and medical services are covered at between 80 and 100 per cent by the health insurance fund if the health insurance card users go to the health clinic or hospital registered on the card.

Examination and treatment with health insurance cards helps participants, especially the poor and near poor people in reducing the financial burden when they are sick.

The health insurance policy also shares risks among the participants.

The 12th National Assembly adopted the Law on Health Insurance on November 14, 2008 and the Government decided to select July 1 as Viet Nam Health Insurance Day each year.

It was an important milestone and a new step in the process of perfecting legal policies on health insurance.

The policy on health insurance then has been gradually improved with the revised law on health insurance promulgated in 2014.

Accordingly, health insurance is designed to take care of the people’s health for non-profit purposes.

The entire population has been encouraged to buy health insurance to protect their health when they become ill.

The health insurance policy is designed with many benefits for participants, including children less than 6 years of age are freely provided with health insurance cards and the State covers a part of the fee to buy health insurance cards for the poor and near-poor households; ethnic minorities and students.

Health insurance has become one of the main pillars of the nation’s social security system.

It is believed to be an important health financing mechanism to help people not fall into poverty when they become sick.

Vietnam Social Security has planned to fulfil the goal of universal health insurance as well as strengthen dissemination of the humanity of the health insurance policy in the future to raise public awareness of the rights and obligations of every organisation and individual in implementing the policy and law on health insurance to achieve the goal./.