Necessary regulations to protect patient rights
Currently, at many health insurance clinics and treatment facilities, there is a shortage of drugs and medical supplies, forcing patients to buy their own drugs as prescribed by their doctors. However, the regulations on the responsibility of reimbursement for costs to patients are not clear.
Delegate Tran Van Tuan (Bac Giang) emphasized that there should be specific regulations requiring medical examination and treatment facilities to refund patients the amount they have paid for medicine and medical supplies before they are discharged from the hospital. This will ensure the legitimate rights of people with health insurance cards, while reducing complicated administrative procedures, helping patients feel more secure when using medical services.
Mr. Tuan also proposed that medical examination and treatment facilities should be responsible for payment to the Social Insurance agency and ensure that payment records are complete and transparent. This not only protects the rights of patients but also helps prevent negative events that may occur during the examination and treatment process.
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Delegate Huynh Thi Anh Suong - National Assembly Delegation of Quang Ngai province. |
Delegate Huynh Thi Anh Suong (Quang Ngai) said that expanding the number of people participating in health insurance is necessary to ensure the rate of universal health insurance coverage. According to Ms. Suong, the number of people participating in health insurance currently reaches more than 93.6 million people, equivalent to 93.35% of the population. However, it is necessary to continue reviewing and adding groups of people who have not participated in health insurance to ensure that all people have access to health services.
Ms. Suong also proposed expanding health insurance payments for medical services such as remote examination and treatment, referrals based on professional requirements, use of blood and blood products, as well as other medical equipment for treatment.
Overcoming shortcomings in health insurance management and appraisal
Delegate Quang Thi Nguyet (Dien Bien) said that amending the concept and content of health insurance appraisal is necessary to overcome difficulties in organizing and implementing the current health insurance policy. Clarifying the payment process for medical examination and treatment costs will contribute to improving the responsibility of the agencies managing the Health Insurance Fund, ensuring effective use of the fund, and preventing waste and negativity.
In addition, delegate Tran Duc Thuan (Nghe An) also said that the draft revised law needs to focus on overcoming difficulties in the implementation of the Law on Health Insurance, in order to clarify the rights of health insurance participants and the responsibilities of relevant agencies.
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Delegate Tran Thi Hong Thanh (Ninh Binh) spoke. |
In addition, delegates also agreed with the expansion of the scope of benefits for health insurance participants. Delegate Tran Thi Hong Thanh (Ninh Binh) highly appreciated the draft law for expanding the subjects and benefits in the rotation between medical examination and treatment levels.
However, Ms. Thanh suggested that it is necessary to add more benefits for pre-hospital emergency services and nutritional treatment services for patients to ensure more complete benefits for health insurance participants.
In addition, delegate Nguyen Thi Thuy (Bac Kan delegation) also proposed reviewing and supplementing regulations on health insurance lines, in order to thoroughly resolve current problems, helping people easily access medical examination and treatment services and avoid inconveniences in administrative procedures.
It is necessary to keep the referral paper to ensure the efficiency of the health system.
Discussing in the group, delegate Nguyen Tri Thuc (Ho Chi Minh City), Deputy Minister of Health, expressed his opinion on the organization of medical examination and treatment at all levels and maintaining the grassroots health system. One of the issues that he was particularly interested in was the retention of referral papers in health insurance examination and treatment, in order to protect and develop a comprehensive health system.
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Delegate Nguyen Tri Thuc - Delegation of National Assembly of Ho Chi Minh City. |
According to Deputy Minister Nguyen Tri Thuc, previously the Vietnamese healthcare system was divided into 4 levels: commune, district, province, and central. However, this revised Law will re-regulate it into 3 levels: initial level (roughly understood as commune health stations), basic level (district hospitals and some provincial hospitals), and specialized level (central hospitals, specialized general hospitals and some provincial hospitals with recognized technical qualifications).
He believes that organizing into 3 levels will be more suitable for the current development of the healthcare system, helping to optimize the flow of medical examination and treatment and improve the quality of service for the people.
At the same time, the new direction of the health sector is to remove administrative barriers in health insurance examination and treatment. This will allow people to examine and receive treatment anywhere without being limited by the initial registration location.
Regarding the proposal of some National Assembly deputies to abolish the referral paper in health insurance examination and treatment, Deputy Minister Nguyen Tri Thuc clearly stated that the referral paper should only be abolished in cases from the initial level to the basic level. However, from the initial level or the basic level to the specialized level (central hospitals and specialized hospitals), the referral paper must be maintained.
He said that the referral form is not only an administrative procedure but also a summary document of the medical record, helping doctors at higher levels understand the patient's health status, thereby having a more accurate and effective treatment regimen.
If referral papers are removed, many patients will not go to health stations and district hospitals but will flock to central hospitals. This will not only overload upper-level hospitals but also destroy the grassroots health system.
“The referral form is very important. If it is removed, patients will no longer go to health stations or district hospitals but will go straight to central hospitals such as Cho Ray, Bach Mai, Viet Duc… At that time, the grassroots health system will be eliminated after only 1-2 years,” said Mr. Nguyen Tri Thuc.
According to the Deputy Minister of Health, if the referral papers are abolished, the pressure on patients at central hospitals will increase dramatically. He gave the example of good doctors at Cho Ray, Viet Duc or Bach Mai Hospitals, who can only perform one special case per day because these surgeries last from 6-8 hours. If patients from everywhere flock to specialized hospitals, doctors will not be able to meet the large number of patients, leading to a "breakdown" at upper-level hospitals.
The Deputy Minister also shared about the negative impact on the quality of medical examination and treatment if referral papers are not maintained. “Previously, a doctor examined about 20 patients per day, but if referral papers are removed, the number of patients waiting for examination could increase to 200 per day. At that time, no doctor will be able to examine them,” he warned.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Tri Thuc also emphasized the important role of the grassroots health system, especially in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. The grassroots health system is the frontline in disease prevention and control, and developing grassroots health care will help people receive medical care locally without having to go to higher levels.
He also affirmed that, currently, the regulations on referral have been relaxed, there are no longer financial barriers between lower-level and upper-level hospitals. This has made it easier for medical facilities to refer patients, bringing many benefits to patients.
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