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| A healthcare staff member at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ho Chi Minh City, uses a tablet to update and share information with her patient __Photo: VNA |
In order to help ease the financial burden of medical examination and treatment for households, the Ministry of Health (MOH) has proposed a scheme on supplementary health insurance that is designed to support and expand benefits for policyholders, without replacing basic health insurance or universal health coverage.
According to the MOH, basic health insurance remains the foundation meanwhile supplementary health insurance is expected to provide additional benefits for the insured. Supplementary health insurance would be available for individuals who have already participated in mandatory health insurance and are willing to purchase supplementary health insurance provided by insurance companies and enterprises licensed to offer such products. The benefits from supplementary health insurance do not overlap with the coverage and benefit levels of mandatory health insurance.
Supplementary health insurance packages include packages covering co-payments for medical examination and treatment under mandatory health insurance; packages covering medical services and on-demand healthcare services beyond the social health insurance fund coverage; packages covering medical treatment for certain critical illnesses or diseases with high treatment costs; and other packages agreed upon between supplementary insurance participants and providers.
The State encourages and provide financial support for employees to purchase supplementary health insurance. Expenditures for employers to purchase supplementary health insurance for their employees may be accounted as lawful business expenses.
The State also encourages supplementary health insurance providers to operate on a not-for-profit basis in order to better meet the people’s healthcare needs.
The assessment of costs incurred from the use of supplementary health insurance services shall be conducted by independent appraisal organizations or through the appraisal system of the Vietnam Social Security.
The premium and benefit levels, payment and dispute settlement mechanisms applicable to supplementary health insurance participants would be specified in contracts between insurance participants and providers.
Supplementary health insurance benefits would be paid under contracts between insurance participants and providers, as well as contracts between healthcare facilities and supplementary health insurance providers.
Revenues generated from supplementary health insurance contracts and other lawful sources would be used to cover healthcare costs beyond the reimbursement scope of the mandatory health insurance fund for supplementary insurance participants.- (VLLF)
