Latest guidance on collecting information on the prices of healthcare services at the same class for the comparison in Vietnam

Latest guidance on collecting information on the prices of healthcare services at the same class for the comparison in Vietnam (Image from the Internet)

On October 17, 2024, the Minister of Health of Vietnam issued Circular 21/2024/TT-BYT stipulating the method for pricing healthcare services.

Latest guidance on collecting information on the prices of healthcare services at the same class for the comparison in Vietnam

According to the regulations in Article 4 of Circular 21/2024/TT-BYT, the collection of information on prices for comparable healthcare services for comparison is conducted as follows:

- The unit formulating the price proposal collects information on the prices of comparable healthcare services to compare with the service requiring pricing provided by other medical facilities and is fully accountable for the accuracy of the information collection process and results.

- Information on the prices of comparable healthcare services must meet the following requirements:

+ Has been or is being applied at the medical facility providing the price information;

+ Collected within 24 months from the time of constructing the price plan from medical facilities in the same province or centrally-run city.

In cases where there are not enough 3 different service providers in the same province or centrally-run city, the information collection is expanded according to the closest to farthest criteria to reach 3 service providers.

- Information on the prices of comparable healthcare services is based on at least one of the following sources:

+ Prices decided, appraised, announced, or provided by competent state authorities;

+ Actual successful transaction prices of organizations and individuals recorded on sales invoices as per regulations or prices listed on service contracts;

+ Declared prices, announced prices, or listed prices as per regulations; prices determined by organizations with price appraisal functions;

+ Prices provided by associations, medical facilities;

+ Prices collected through officially posted information on electronic information pages, portals of agencies, and organizations;

+ Prices surveyed and collected in the market by organizations and individuals formed into survey information forms as per the sample provided in Appendix I issued along with the Circular;

+ Offer prices, asking prices on quotations of service providers or goods production, business units. The quotation must be stamped by the unit (if available) and contain full information on:

++  Name,  address;

++  Tax  code  (if  any);

++  Time  of  providing  information;

++  Validity  of  the  quotation,  asking  price  (if  any);

+ Prices in price databases for healthcare services as per legal regulations.

More details can be found in Circular 21/2024/TT-BYT, which comes into force in Vietnam from October 17, 2024.

The following Circulars expire in Vietnam from January 1, 2025:

- Circular 13/2023/TT-BYT by the Minister of Health of Vietnam stipulating the price framework and pricing method for healthcare services upon request provided by state-owned medical facilities;

- Circular 21/2023/TT-BYT by the Minister of Health of Vietnam regulating the price framework of state healthcare services and guiding the application of prices and payment of medical examination and treatment costs in certain cases;

- Circular 22/2023/TT-BYT by the Minister of Health of Vietnam standardizing the prices of medical examination and treatment insurance services among hospitals of the same level nationwide and guiding the application of prices and payment of insurance-based medical examination and treatment costs in certain cases.

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