In Lang Son:

Under the general economic and social difficulties, mobilizing over 85,000 students and pupils to participate in health insurance posed significant challenges for various levels and sectors within Lang Son province. Nevertheless, overcoming these difficulties and challenges, the mountainous province has achieved quite impressive results.

Recently, on her way home from school, Mai Hai A, an 11th-grade student in class 11A5 at Cao Loc High School, unfortunately suffered a leg injury due to a traffic accident. During her treatment, luckily, A. was covered by health insurance, which significantly helped in covering most of her medical expenses and medication costs. "Through this unfortunate incident, I have come to realize the immense significance and importance of health insurance participation" A. shared.

Promoting health insurance Policies to Students at Chu Van An High School

According to statistics for the 2022-2023 academic year, in Lang Son province, there are 442 educational institutions with 154,489 students participating in health insurance. Among them, 85,561 students are eligible for school-based health insurance coverage, while the others have been issued health insurance cards based on different categories of beneficiaries. Notably, 8 districts and cities have achieved 100% coverage of students participating in health insurance. These include Lang Son City, Huu Lung, Cao Loc, Chi Lang, Loc Binh, Van Lang, Trang Dinh, and Bac Son. The remaining 3 districts have achieved coverage rates ranging from 99.21% to 99.86%, with Binh Gia at 99.86%, Van Quan at 97.84%, and Dinh Lap at 99.21%. Therefore, as of the end of the 2022-2023 academic year, there are only 28 students in Lang Son province who have not yet joined health insurance, accounting for only 0.02% of students eligible for school-based coverage.

In addition to actively encouraging students to participate in health insurance, the provision of healthcare services in schools has also received attention. As a result, students' healthcare rights have been expanded and timely ensured. Many students who fell ill or had accidents had their treatment costs covered by the health insurance fund, amounting to hundreds of millions of Vietnamese dong. For example, Nguyen Duy A, residing in Vinh Trai Ward (Lang Son City), received nearly 280 million Vietnamese dong covered by the health insurance fund; Bui Van D, residing in Tam Thanh Ward (Lang Son City), received nearly 200 million Vietnamese dong; Hua Tien N, residing in Hoang Van Thu Commune (Van Lang District), received over 160 million Vietnamese dong...

To achieve impressive results as mentioned above, Lang Son Provincial Social Security Office, right from the beginning of the new school year, proactively seized leadership and guidance from VSS as well as relevant authorities at all levels within the region. They conducted comprehensive assessments and evaluations of the factors influencing student health insurance work. From these evaluations, they unified their direction, objectives, and implementation strategies. Particularly, they focused on analyzing existing shortcomings and limitations and launched a movement to strive for 100% students participating health insurance.

Explaining the Community Sharing Aspect of Health Insurance Policy to Students

In addition, it is suggested that the Department of Education and Training find solutions to mobilize community support for students with difficult circumstances to enroll in health insurance. The results of implementing social insurance and health insurance policies should be included in the annual performance evaluation of teachers and education officials. Furthermore, the District Social Security office should provide guidance to the district party committees and local authorities in directing student health insurance policies, including investments in improving the quality of primary healthcare in schools.

Regarding the direction of tasks in the 2023-2024 academic year, Lang Son Provincial Social Security office will continue to closely follow the guidance and directives from the central and local authorities. Based on this, they will collaborate with the healthcare sector to ensure proper healthcare services for students with health insurance cards in case they become ill or are involved in accidents that require hospitalization. They will also coordinate with the Department of Education and Training to oversee the implementation of school healthcare services and promote physical education activities, contributing to the comprehensive education goals and the care and protection of students' health.

Lang Son Social Security Office also recognizes that implementing health insurance policies for students is an important task for the entire political system, with the education sector playing a central role in achieving success. Therefore, in the new academic year, they will continue to closely coordinate with educational institutions to promote and guide the collection of student health insurance premiums and allocate funds for school health programs. They will also educate parents and students about the importance and significance of these policies. Through these efforts, they are determined to strive for 100% student participating in health insurance in the 2023-2024 academic year.

In our discussion, Ms. Le Thi Manh Khuong, the Vice Principal of Chu Van An High School in Lang Son City, which has successfully implemented student health insurance for many years, shared her insights: "With the close guidance from the Department of Education and Training and the strong collaboration with Lang Son Provincial Social Insurance, our school has been proactive in implementing health insurance for the 2023-2024 academic year. We have started by providing guidance on health insurance enrollment and distributing health insurance cards to homeroom teachers for the purpose of disseminating health insurance policies and laws to parents and students. In this academic year, our school has a total of 1,024 students, including 125 students who fall into different beneficiary categories, and 896 students who are required to enroll in health insurance through the school. To ensure the success of health insurance premiums collection, our school will continue to closely cooperate with Lang Son Social Security Office in conducting awareness campaigns and policy dissemination, aiming for 100% student participating health insurance."

Hoang Huu Quang, the Deputy Director of Lang Son Provincial Social Security Office, emphasized that according to the Health Insurance Law, students are mandatory beneficiaries of health insurance. By participating in this policy, students receive initial healthcare services at their schools. Moreover, if they need medical treatment, they not only gain access to healthcare services but also have their medical expenses covered by the health insurance fund, which helps ease the financial burden on their families. "Therefore, participating in health insurance is not only a right but also a legal responsibility. It reflects the spirit of 'mutual assistance' among the Vietnamese people and demonstrates students' and their families' social responsibility in sharing risks with the community," Mr. Quang shared.

Furthermore, according to Deputy Director Hoang Huu Quang, to sustainably implement the student health insurance policy, Lang Son Provincial Social Security office and the Department of Education and Training need to collaborate closely to instill and enhance awareness and responsibility among school principals, as well as all staff and teachers in schools. In particular, the communication efforts should be renewed to ensure flexibility and alignment with the specific characteristics of each locality, region, and beneficiary group. "With the proactive engagement of Lang Son Provincial Social Insurance and the Department of Education and Training, along with the collective attention of the entire political system and social consensus, we are confident that the student health insurance work in the 2023-2024 academic year will achieve the expected results and contribute significantly to the mission of protecting and caring for the health of the people in the province," Mr. Quang emphasized.

In Hau Giang:

Recently, Hau Giang Social Security Office collaborated with the People's Committee of Vi Thanh City to organize a seminar to share experiences and expand the model of developing voluntary social insurance and household health insurance.

According to the report from the People's Committee of Vi Thanh City, as of the end of August 2023, the entire city had 60,744 health insurance participants, achieving a coverage rate of 83.19% of the population. Additionally, 1,201 voluntary social insurance participants, reaching 51.48% of the provincial government's plan. The development of participants in social insurance and health insurance across the city, in general, has not yet matched its potential, requiring significant efforts to meet the 2023 targets. It is worth noting that the sustainability of participation rates in health insurance and voluntary social insurance is a challenge, especially for many households that lack the financial means to participate in health insurance according to the annual financial plan…

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In addition to addressing the challenges and solutions, during the seminar, participants heard about successful models and best practices for developing and maintaining voluntary social insurance and household health insurance participants. For example, Ward 1 achieved the highest health insurance participation rate, with 5,270 people participating by the end of August 2023, reaching a coverage rate of 93.74% of the population. According to their sharing, in the recent past, the Ward People's Committee has consistently identified the development of health insurance participants as a crucial political task closely linked to the socio-economic development mission. Therefore, from the beginning of the year, the Ward People's Committee proactively assigned targets to different areas to enhance mobilization efforts. They also paid attention to improving the Steering Committee responsible for implementing social and health insurance policies.

According to the Ward 1 People's Committee representative, their success can be attributed to the high unity and determination of the entire political system, characterized by flexible approaches. Specifically, when they received the health insurance target allocation, the Ward People's Committee promptly advised the People's Council to include the health insurance targets in the Ward People's Council Resolution and the Party Committee's annual work program. In addition to allocating targets to various areas, associations, and organizations, the Ward People's Committee also advised the Party Committee to allocate targets to party cells and party members, linking the promotion of family members' health insurance participation to the year-end evaluation of party members.

Furthermore, the Ward 1 People's Committee also directed various areas and staff responsible for regular monitoring and understanding the situation of the local population. They paid special attention to individuals approaching working age, those employed in local businesses, small-scale traders, individual business owners, and those interested in joining health insurance. Additionally, they organized multiple rounds of competition and short-term and annual awards among different areas. This not only encouraged a strong work ethic but also played an important role in achieving the set targets.

Particularly, the ward maximized the roles and responsibilities of each member in the Executive Committee of the ward's Party Committee assigned to lead specific areas. Starting from the Secretary, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee, Chairperson, and Vice Chairperson of the Ward People's Committee, they all personally visited different areas during peak mobilization periods and worked together with area representatives to visit households and promote health insurance participation. Consequently, the residents were highly supportive and actively participated, while different areas effectively fulfilled their leadership and civic responsibilities.

In his speech at the seminar, Mr. Nguyen Huu Tinh, a member of the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee in Hau Giang and the Secretary of the Vị Thanh City Party Committee, affirmed that the local authorities are always concerned about the implementation of social and health insurance policies. Recently, on September 13, 2023, the Standing Committee of the Vị Thanh City Party Committee issued Circular No. 803-CV/TU to intensify propaganda and mobilization efforts to encourage residents to participate in voluntary social insurance and household health insurance in Vị Thanh City for the year 2023.

Therefore, Mr. Nguyen Huu Tinh proposed that the local political system should be even more active in expanding voluntary social and household health insurance participants. This entails strengthening the roles and responsibilities of Party committees, local authorities, Steering Committees, the Fatherland Front, and political-social organizations, from the city to the wards and communes, in the implementation of social and health insurance policies to ensure social security in the area. Particularly, timely guidance should be provided to wards and communes with low participation rates in health insurance and voluntary social insurance, with appropriate measures to increase participant numbers.

At the seminar, representatives from various organizations in Vị Thanh City also demonstrated their determination to increase voluntary social insurance and household health insurance participation. A representative from the Farmers' Association of Vị Thanh City stated that they have collaborated with the Communications Office and the People's Committee of Hỏa Tiến Commune to implement the model "Strive for 30% of Farmers' Association members to participate in voluntary social insurance and 95% of members participating in household health insurance." Currently, Hỏa Tiến Commune has more than 900 Farmers' Association members, accounting for nearly 1/5 of the population in the commune. Recognizing the benefits of voluntary social insurance, the Farmers' Association has increased its propaganda efforts, mobilization, and the establishment of a model to help its members understand the social insurance and health insurance policies. They are determined to have around 300 Farmers' Association members participate in voluntary social insurance and over 95% of members participating in household health insurance by the end of November 2023.

During the exchange at the seminar, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Xuan, Director of the Hau Giang Provincial Social Insurance Office, emphasized that despite facing difficulties, Vị Thanh City has made significant efforts in developing participants in social insurance and health insurance. In the future, to effectively carry out this work, the locality needs to promote successful models and solutions that have produced results. Additionally, the wards and communes in Vị Thanh should take proactive and creative approaches to find solutions. On the part of the provincial social insurance agency, they will continue to collaborate with the locality to overcome difficulties. Furthermore, Ms. Xuan hopes that the leaders of communes and wards will continue to provide guidance and strengthen propaganda efforts so that people can confidently participate in voluntary social insurance and household health insurance.