Are people living on islands entitled to be paid health insurance by the State in Vietnam?

Are people living on islands entitled to be paid health insurance by the State in Vietnam?

In Article 12 of the Law on Health Insurance 2008 as amended by Clause 6, Article 1 of the Law on Health Insurance Amendment 2014 stipulates persons eligible for health insurance, specifically as follows:

1. The group whose insurance are paid by the employers and employees, including:

a) Employees on indefinite or at least full three-month contracts; salaried business managers; officials and civil servants (hereinafter referred to as employees).

b) Part-time officers in communes, wards and towns under the regulations of the law.

2. The group of the insured whose insurance is paid by the social insurance organizations, including:

b) Persons receiving monthly retirement pensions and compensation for loss of capacity for work

b) Persons receiving monthly social insurance pensions due to occupational accidents or diseases or diseases needing long-term treatment; beneficiaries at the age of 80 or above;

c) Officers in communes, wards and towns who have left employment and been receiving monthly social insurance benefits.

d) Persons receiving unemployment benefits.

3. The group of the insured whose insurance is paid by the State budget, including:

a) Commissioned officers, professional soldiers, non-commissioned soldiers on active duty; commissioned police officers and non-commissioned police officers; police students, non-commissioned police officers or soldiers on fixed term contracts; ciphers whose salaries are the same as the salaries as the servicemen; cipher students whose benefits are the same as the benefits of students in military or police academies.

c) Officers in communes, wards and towns who have left employment and been receiving monthly pensions funded by the State budget.

c) Persons no longer receiving compensation for loss of capacity for work and being receiving monthly pensions funded by the State budget;

d) Persons performing meritorious services in the wars, war veterans;

dd) Incumbent deputies of the National Assembly or the People’s Councils at all levels;

e) Children under the age of 6;

g) Persons receiving monthly social protection pensions;

h) Poor household members, ethnics living in regions facing socio-economic difficulties, persons living in regions facing extreme socio-economic difficulties; persons living in island communes or districts.

i) Relatives of persons performing meritorious services in the wars such as biology parents, husbands, wives or children of revolutionary martyrs; persons rearing revolutionary martyrs;

k) Relatives of persons performing meritorious services in the wars, except for the insured prescribed at point i this Clause;

k) Relatives of the insured prescribed in point a clause 3 this Article;

m) Persons who have donated body parts under the regulations of the law;

n) Foreigners studying in Vietnam that are granted scholarships funded by the Vietnam State budget.

4. The group of the insured whose insurance are supported by the State budget, including:

a) Members of households living above the poverty line;

b) Students.

5. Group of the household insured including household members except for the ones prescribed in Clauses 1, 2, 3 and 4 this Article.

6. The government shall prescribed the insured different from the ones prescribed in Clauses 3, 4 and 5 this Article; regulate the issuance of the health insurance cards to the insured under the management of the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security and the insured prescribed in point 1 Clause 3 this Article; regulate the medical insurance procedures, scope of benefits, benefit levels , medical examination and treatment covered by health insurance, management and use of the budget used for medical examination and treatment covered by health insurance, health insurance inspection, payment for health insurance of the insured prescribed in point a Clause 3 this Article.

According to this Article, if you are living in an island area, you will be paid health insurance by the state and issued a free health insurance card in Vietnam.

Can I get health insurance when going to the hospitals different from the registered hospital in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 22 of the Law on Health Insurance 2008 as amended by Clause 15, Article 1 of the Law on Health Insurance Amendment 2014 on benefit levels of health insurance, as follows:

1. The benefit levels of the insured receiving medical examination and treatment in accordance with the regulations in Articles 26, 27 and 28 of this Law whose medical examination and treatment expenditures are covered by the health insurance fund shall be:

a) Total medical examination and treatment expenditures with regard to the insured prescribed in points a, d, e, g, h and i Clause 3 Article 12 of this Law. The costs of the non-covered medical services of the insured prescribed in point a Clause 3 Article 12 of this Law shall be paid by the health insurance budget used for medical examination and treatment of these insured persons; if this budget is insufficient, the State budget shall be in charge.

b) Total medical examination and treatment expenditures with regard to any medical examination and treatment at commune hospitals whose cost is lower than the cost prescribed by the Government.

c) Total medical examination and treatment expenditures with regard to the at least 5-year-insured whose medical examination and treatment expenditures exceed the total amount of the base salaries in 6 months, except for the insured who go to the hospitals different from the registered hospitals;

d) 95% of the medial examination and treatment expenditures with regard to the insured prescribed in point a Clause 2, point k Clause 3 and point a Clause 4 Article 12 of this Law;

dd) 80 % of the medial examination and treatment expenditures with regard to other insured persons;

2. In case an insured person belongs to different groups of the insured, (s)he shall be provided with the highest health insurance benefits.

3. In case any card holder goes to a hospital different from the registered hospital except for the insured prescribed in Clause 1 this Article, his or her costs shall be covered by the health insurance fund according to the benefit levels prescribed in Clause 1 this Article as follows:

a) 40% of the inpatient treatment expenditures at the central hospitals.

b) 60% of the inpatient treatment expenditures at the provincial hospitals from the effective date of this Law to December 31, 2020; total inpatient treatment costs from January 01, 2021 at all hospitals in Vietnam.

c) 70% of the medical examination and treatment expenditures at the district hospitals from the effective date of this Law to December 31, 2015; total medical examination and treatment expenditures from January 01, 2016.

4. The insured applying for medical examination and treatment at commune medical facilities, clinics or district hospitals can receive medical examination and treatment at any commune medial facility, clinic or district hospital in the same province according to the benefit levels prescribed in Clause 1 this Article from January 01, 2016.

5. The insured who are poor household members or ethnics living in regions facing socio-economic difficulties, regions facing extreme socio-economic difficulties; the insured living in island communes or islands districts who go to the hospitals different from the registered hospital shall be paid for their medical examination and treatment expenditures at the commune hospitals, their inpatient treatment costs at the provincial and central hospital by the health insurance fund according to the benefit levels prescribed in Clause 1 this Article.

6. The inpatient treatment expenditures of the insured who go to any provincial hospital in Vietnam different from their registered hospitals shall be paid by the health insurance fund from January 01, 2021.

7. The Government shall prescribe the specific benefit levels of the medical examination and treatment at bordering areas; medical services and other kinds of medical examination and treatment which is not prescribed in Clause 1 this Article.

Thus, if you are living in an island commune or an island district, when you go to the hospitals different from the registered hospital, the health insurance fund will pay the costs of medical examination and treatment at district hospitals and inpatient treatment for hospitals at provincial and central levels, the benefit rate is 100% in Vietnam.

Best Regards!