Medical facility inspectors ask patients to present paper health insurance cards

According to information from Vietnam Social Security, using electronic health insurance cards or chip-embedded citizen identification cards brings many benefits to patients.

Medical facility inspectors ask patients to present paper health insurance cards

According to information from Vietnam Social Security, using electronic health insurance cards or chip-embedded citizen identification cards brings many benefits to patients.

Recently, patients reported that many medical facilities still require patients to present paper health insurance cards when going for medical examination and treatment, although Vietnam Social Security has announced data connection and allows people to use chip-embedded citizen identification cards (CCCD) or electronic health insurance cards via the VssID application instead.

People only need to use their health insurance card via the VssID application or a chip-embedded citizen ID card to go to the doctor without having to present a paper health insurance card.

Mr. Le Van Phuc, Head of the Health Insurance Policy Implementation Department, Vietnam Social Security, affirmed that currently, people only need to use their health insurance card via the VssID application or a citizen ID card with a chip to go to the doctor without having to present a paper health insurance card. The fact that some hospitals or medical facilities require patients to present a paper health insurance card is not in accordance with regulations.

"We will conduct inspections and checks on medical facilities to see why patients are required to present paper health insurance cards, while we currently no longer provide paper health insurance cards," said Mr. Phuc.

According to information from Vietnam Social Security, using electronic health insurance cards or chip-embedded citizen identification cards brings many benefits to patients.

The use of technology helps shorten administrative procedures, creating convenience for people when seeking medical examination and treatment at medical facilities, while ensuring transparency and convenience in managing health insurance data. All information about patients' health insurance benefits is digitized, helping to minimize errors and fraud.

Along with that, Mr. Le Van Phuc also mentioned the payment for patients when they have to buy medicine outside of health insurance. This is actually not a new regulation.

Previously, Vietnam Social Insurance paid for some cases where patients had to buy medicine from outside because medical facilities did not have available treatment drugs. However, according to Mr. Phuc, medical facilities now have enough medicine, and the drug bidding process has been "cleared" from the central to local levels, so there is no reason for patients to buy medicine from outside.

“People should proactively use electronic health insurance cards via the VssID application or chip-embedded citizen identification cards when going to the hospital to ensure their health insurance benefits. At the same time, people need to follow information from the Vietnam Social Security to update new regulations related to health insurance and health care,” Mr. Le Van Phuc recommended.

According to the provisions of the Law on Health Insurance and the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment, medical facilities are responsible for ensuring adequate supply of medicines and medical supplies for patients. Payment of medicine costs outside of health insurance should only be applied in special cases.

It is known that from 2025, there will be important changes in health insurance examination and treatment. Specifically, from 2025, patients with rare or serious diseases can be treated directly at specialized medical facilities without having to request a referral as before.

Serious illnesses such as cancer, stroke, lupus erythematosus, organ transplants will be covered 100% by health insurance when treated at upper-level hospitals.

Reimbursement of drug and medical equipment costs outside of health insurance: According to Circular 22/2024/TT-BYT, from January 1, 2025, if the hospital does not have the necessary drugs or medical equipment in the health insurance list, the patient will be reimbursed when purchasing drugs or equipment outside. Payment will be based on the drug purchase invoice at the pharmaceutical facility and will not exceed the hospital's prescribed payment level.

Abolishment of health insurance drug classification by hospital: From January 1, 2025, the regulation on health insurance drug classification will be abolished, creating conditions for medical facilities to use the entire list of drugs within their scope of expertise without distinction of hospital class. This helps people access timely treatment drugs, especially in emergency situations or when lower-level hospitals do not have treatment drugs.

According to the report of Vietnam Social Security, in 2024, the number of people participating in social insurance will reach about 20.11 million people, accounting for 42.71% of the working-age workforce. The number of people participating in health insurance will reach 95.523 million people, equivalent to 94.2% of the population.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/thanh-tra-co-so-y-te-yeu-cau-benh-nhan-xuat-trinh-the-bao-hiem-y-te-giay-d241336.html