The Social Affairs Committee today held a conference to review the draft law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Health Insurance. The session was held in at the National Assembly Office.
Nevertheless, members of the agency reviewing the law on amendments and supplements to several articles of the Health Insurance Law were open to exploring the option of enhancing State support for student insurance in order to alleviate the financial strain on families and maintain the stability of the Insurance Fund.
Presenting the draft law, Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan stated that the draft law amends and supplements 40 articles on health insurance participants, payment responsibilities, benefits, scope of benefits, health insurance examination and treatment organization, fund management and some technical regulations.
The regulations in question require unification and alignment with applicable laws to address the deficiencies present in the existing legal framework. It is imperative that these regulations are established promptly, supported by adequate information and data, and that a consensus is achieved. This includes provisions for the transition from four levels of medical examination and treatment to three levels of technical expertise, which are set to take effect on January 1, 2025, in accordance with the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment.
The draft introduces new sanctions for actions that delay or evade health insurance payments. It also revises regulations concerning medical examinations and treatments, aligning them with the technical expertise standards established by the 2023 Law on Medical Examination and Treatment.
Additionally, the regulations governing the registration of initial health insurance medical examinations and treatments, as well as the transfer of patients between facilities, have been updated to ensure consistency with the technical expertise requirements. This aims to enhance convenience for the public while decentralizing and delegating authority to the Department of Health regarding the registration of initial health insurance medical examinations and the allocation of health insurance cards, as stated by the Minister of Health.
The proposed amendment also seeks to safeguard the rights of health insurance participants and enhance the efficient management and utilization of funds. This includes introducing regulations on patient transportation, addressing the treatment of strabismus and refractive errors of the eyes for individuals under 18 years old, and implementing guidelines on the cost of utilizing blood, blood products, medical gases, supplies, tools, and instruments for medical examination and treatment within the scope of benefits for health insurance participants.
The draft further clarifies the payment mechanism for the transfer of pharmaceuticals in instances where drugs have been procured in accordance with the most favorable provisions of the new Bidding Law, yet are insufficient to safeguard the rights of health insurance participants, thereby preventing patients from having to purchase and finance their medications independently.
Members of the reviewing agency voiced their opinions that the draft law basically follows the contents presented by the Government in the previous proposal; therefore, it is consistent with the Party's policies and guidelines, and is consistent with the legal system. The draft law dossier meets the requirements of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents, but it is necessary to continue to supplement more information and data to increase persuasiveness, creating a basis for the National Assembly to consider and decide.
At the conference, it was suggested that students should not buy health insurance with their family relatives by households to avoid causing disruption to participants, ensuring that all students buy health insurance at schools. However, it is possible to consider increasing the level of State support for student insurance to reduce the burden on families and balance the Insurance Fund.
