Speaking at the meeting, Deputy Director General of Viet Nam Social Security Le Hung Son said the financial management in healthcare, especially in insurance-based medical check-ups and treatment, is among issues that have received due attention by the Vietnamese Party, State, and Viet Nam Social Security (VSS).

“We are badly in need of models and experiences on financial management in healthcare, including the collection and payment in public hospitals. These practices must be transparent to secure the benefits of the insured as well as the sustainability of the Health Insurance Fund,” said VSS Deputy Director General Son.

At present, medicines on the VSS health insurance coverage list basically meet treatment requirements, facilitating the health insurance policyholders to get access to new medicines compatible with the Ministry of Health’s diagnosis and treatment options, and resolving shortcomings in reimbursement of prescription drugs covered by the Health Insurance Fund.

The WHO delegation led by Socorro Escalante meets with Viet Nam Social Security

According to documents regulating the classification of surgery services and medical procedures, there are currently 19,000 technical services allowed to operate in Vietnam by the Ministry of Health. Nevertheless, only 9,190 services are eligible for insurance coverage, including 124 services/service groups which are specified with payment conditions and rates.

On the other hand, VSS has acknowledged the shortage of medicines and medical supplies in numerous localities and healthcare establishments. And the major cause is the delayed/slow bidding for the supply of medicines and medical equipment and materials, to which the COVID-19 pandemic is seen as the key obstacle.

VSS Deputy Director General Le Hung Son and representatives of some units receive the WHO delegation

At the working session, WHO Acting Chief Representative, Viet Nam Office Health Systems Team Coordinator Socorro Escalante said if the Health Insurance Fund spends big but ineffectively, it will have huge impacts on health insurance policyholders, the Fund and the whole system of medical establishments.

According to Socorro Escalante, global experience shows that most public hospitals will shift to operate under            financial autonomy - which helps hospitals expand and patients to enjoy better medical services.

Socorro Escalante said medical services are a special field, some costs depend on the commitments between the supplier – hospitals and the recipient – patients. Therefore, social insurance agencies must develop their own management methods, clear and transparent principles and a supervision system to timely discover wrongdoings.

A general view of the meeting between WHO delegation and VSS representatives

On the occasion, WHO specialists also put forth some recommendations for Viet Nam Social Security, such as drug price negotiation requires the participation of various agencies; during the implementation process, it is necessary to develop criteria for price negotiation, from which to come up with the most reasonable plan; and during the process from the formulation to the application of the list of medicines on national insurance coverage, it is necessary to continuously evaluate the effectiveness to make reasonable adjustments./.