Comrade Tran Cam Tu, Politburo member, Standing member of the Secretariat. (Photo: DANG KHOA) 

 Directive No. 52-CT/TW was signed and issued by Comrade Tran Cam Tu, Politburo member and Standing member of the Secretariat. The content of the Directive clearly states:

After 15 years of implementing Directive No. 38-CT/TW, dated September 7, 2009 of the 10th Party Central Committee Secretariat on "Promoting health insurance in the new situation" (Directive No. 38), health insurance has achieved important results, gradually becoming a basic pillar of the social security policy of the Party and State, contributing to implementing the principle of sharing and ensuring finance in the work of protecting, caring for and improving people's health; awareness of the position, role and significance of health insurance policy of Party committees, Party organizations, authorities and people has been raised; the system of policies and laws on health insurance has been gradually improved; State management of health insurance and management of the Health Insurance Fund has been focused; by the end of 2024, the health insurance coverage rate will reach 94.29% of the population; The application of information technology and digital transformation in the field of health insurance has been invested in and has initially shown effectiveness; the quality of medical examination and treatment under health insurance has changed positively; basic health indicators of the people and the community have improved.

However, the implementation of Directive No. 38 still has shortcomings; some Party committees, Party organizations and authorities have not paid due attention to leadership, direction, inspection, supervision and resolution of difficulties in health insurance work; propaganda and mobilization work in some places is still formal and ineffective; mechanisms and policies are not synchronous, lack strategy, and have not removed bottlenecks; coordination between relevant ministries and branches is sometimes not tight and regular; health insurance coverage is not sustainable; health insurance appraisal and payment of health insurance examination and treatment costs are still problematic; health insurance payment methods have not been fully promulgated according to the provisions of the Law on Health Insurance; the quality of health insurance examination and treatment at grassroots health facilities and in remote, isolated and particularly difficult areas has not met requirements. Investment in information technology infrastructure to serve the interconnection of health insurance data is still slow...

The fundamental cause of the above shortcomings and limitations is the low awareness of some Party committees, authorities and a part of the people, workers and enterprises about their obligations, rights and responsibilities regarding health insurance; health insurance policies are not yet consistent; facilities, equipment and professional capacity of medical staff at the grassroots level have not met the people's needs for medical examination and treatment; agencies implementing health insurance policies and some medical facilities have not yet promoted their roles, responsibilities and coordination; health insurance contributions are still low, and medical service prices have not been fully calculated.

To implement universal health insurance in the new period, the Secretariat requests Party committees, Party organizations, authorities and unions at all levels to thoroughly grasp and seriously and effectively implement the following tasks and solutions:

1. Party committees, party organizations, and authorities at all levels shall strengthen leadership and direction in effectively implementing policies, laws, programs, and plans on health insurance; consider this a regular, continuous, and long-term political task and include health insurance coverage targets in resolutions, programs, and annual and long-term socio-economic development plans; closely and synchronously coordinate between State management agencies in implementing health insurance policies and guidelines; focus on developing health insurance participants, promoting health insurance coverage by household. The State shall continue to increase the level of health insurance contribution support for policy beneficiaries, people in poor and near-poor households, people with disabilities, and vulnerable people, ensuring sustainable maintenance and increasing the proportion of the population participating in health insurance; By 2026, the health coverage rate will reach over 95% of the population, and by 2030, the goal of universal health insurance coverage will be achieved.

2. Focus on amending, supplementing and perfecting the system of policies and laws on health insurance to meet the goal of universal health insurance coverage; research on increasing health insurance premiums in line with the expansion of the scope of benefits and levels of health insurance benefits; pilot and diversify health insurance packages and supplementary health insurance according to people's needs; strengthen the connection and cooperation between health insurance and health insurance provided by insurance companies to avoid duplication of medical expense payments; encourage and facilitate the development of diverse types of health insurance; mobilize, diversify and expand revenue sources, ensure sustainability and develop the Health Insurance Fund to serve the work of protecting, caring for and improving people's health.

From 2026, gradually increase the rate, payment level, and expenditure for disease prevention, diagnosis, and early treatment of a number of diseases and priority subjects in accordance with the roadmap for increasing health insurance premiums and the balancing capacity of the Health Insurance Fund. In particular, expand the scope of health insurance payment for a number of preventive medical services, nutrition, chronic disease management, periodic health check-ups and screening examinations according to professional requirements; study the mechanism for using part of the budget from tobacco harm prevention funds, taxes on alcohol, beer, sugary drinks, etc. to pay for a number of disease prevention services, chronic disease management, periodic health check-ups, screening examinations, diagnosis and early detection of a number of diseases, especially non-communicable diseases.

3. Innovate the content, form, method of information, propaganda, dissemination, and implementation of the Party's guidelines, the State's policies and laws on health insurance with the right focus and key points, suitable for each target group, in order to raise awareness and responsibility of all levels, sectors, unions, organizations and people on health insurance; create a strong change in participation in health insurance, identifying participation in health insurance as the right and responsibility of all people and of the whole society.

4. Effectively implement projects, programs, and plans on health and health insurance; innovate service style and attitude, and promote the improvement of medical ethics of medical staff towards patient satisfaction. Invest in facilities, equipment, and professional capacity to improve the quality of services in disease prevention and health insurance examination and treatment, especially in primary health care, remote areas, especially difficult areas, border areas, seas, and islands. Speed ​​up the progress of correctly and fully calculating the prices of preventive health services, health insurance examination and treatment, and at the same time have an effective control mechanism to prevent and combat waste, overcharging, increasing unreasonable medical service prescriptions, and violations of the law in the management and use of the Health Insurance Fund, ensuring the rights of health insurance participants. Implement solutions to reduce the burden of medical costs for patients.

5. Strengthen and improve the capacity of state management agencies and health insurance implementing agencies at the central and local levels; perfect the mechanism for coordination of inspection, examination, and inter-sectoral supervision; strictly handle violations and health insurance profiteering; diversify the types of health insurance service provision; control health insurance examination and treatment costs transparently and scientifically; improve health insurance appraisal capacity. Fully deploy health insurance payment methods, determine methods of direct support for health insurance participants when using health services; have solutions to prevent and combat corruption, waste, and negativity in payment of health insurance examination and treatment costs.

6. Complete infrastructure, promote administrative reform, comprehensive digital transformation of health insurance work; enhance the application of artificial intelligence and big data to control and monitor health insurance examination and treatment services, ensure the national health insurance database is connected, synchronize the databases of ministries, branches and localities with the national health database.

7. Implementation organization

Provincial, municipal and central party committees direct the research, dissemination, propaganda and popularization of the Directive's contents to cadres, party members and people; develop programs and plans with specific tasks, solutions and roadmaps to implement the Directive and regularly urge, inspect and supervise the implementation.

The National Assembly Party Committee and the Government Party Committee lead and direct competent agencies to review, amend, supplement and perfect policies and laws related to health insurance work.

The Government Party Committee leads the Government to direct the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Finance to closely coordinate with departments, ministries, branches and localities to effectively implement this Directive.

The Party Committee of the Fatherland Front and central mass organizations shall step up propaganda, mobilization, supervision and social criticism in the process of deploying and implementing the Directive.

The Central Propaganda and Mass Mobilization Commission shall preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies to guide, monitor, inspect, and urge the deployment and implementation of the Directive and periodically report to the Secretariat.