Ho Chi Minh City eases access to public health checkups across city

On August 4, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health announced a citywide health checkup program that removes administrative boundary restrictions, allowing residents to choose the most convenient participating facility.

The initiative is intended to make healthcare services more accessible while maximizing the capacity of the city's public healthcare system.

Under the policy, all Vietnamese citizens who are actually residing in Ho Chi Minh City, including both permanent and temporary residents whose information has been verified through the VNeID application, are eligible to participate in the city's health checkup program, regardless of their registered place of residence or the locality where they live.

The policy does not apply to individuals under the management of the Ministry of National Defence or the Ministry of Public Security, or employees whose health checkups are arranged by their employers in accordance with regulations.

The program is being implemented at hospitals under central-government ministries and agencies, public hospitals, and regional medical centers managed by the municipal Department of Health. The centralized approach is designed to ensure consistent medical standards, standardized examination procedures, unified electronic health record management, and efficient citywide monitoring of the program.

Commune health stations, private hospitals and private clinics are not participating in the program.

The funding mechanism ensures that residents can receive health checkups anywhere in the city without affecting local budgets. All budgeting and reimbursement for participating hospitals and regional medical centers will be handled centrally by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health.

The department said the initiative places residents at the center of healthcare services, allowing them to select the most convenient facility while strengthening coordination across the city's public healthcare network.