New regulations on rights and responsibilities of medical establishments in Vietnam

Pursuant to Articles 59 and 60 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 (taking effect  on January 1, 2024), it stipulates the rights and responsibilities of medical establishments in Vietnam as follows:

Rights of medical establishments in Vietnam

- Render healthcare services pursuant to this Law.

- Refuse to render healthcare services if:

+ the medical establishment judges that a patient case goes beyond its professional competence or lies outside of its scope of operation, except in case of emergency care defined in Article 61 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023.

+ circumstances prescribed in clause 3, 4 and 5 of Article 40 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 arise.

- Receive payments of healthcare costs or expenses in accordance with law.

- Enjoy incentive policies when rendering healthcare services in accordance with law.

- Enter into contracts for provision of medical services covered by health insurance with social insurance agencies in accordance with laws on health insurance; enter into these contracts with other insurers in accordance with laws on insurance business.

- Cooperate with domestic and foreign entities and persons in healthcare.

- Gain permission to offer care and support services at the request of patients or patients' representatives.

- Private medical establishments may participate in the bidding process or have access to the Government’s orders for provision of several healthcare services on the list of public services partially funded by the state budget’s grants or financial support.

New regulations on rights and responsibilities of medical establishments in Vietnam (Internet image) 

Responsibilities of medical establishments in Vietnam

- Provide first aid, emergency, medical examination and treatment services in a timely manner for patients.

- Implement regulations on professional and technical expertise in healthcare and other relevant laws; take responsibility for results of medical care rendered by medical practitioners under their management.

- Publicly announce working hours and days and lists of medical practitioners and service hours of each medical practitioner working as their staff.

- Post up prices of medical services, prices of medical care and support services upon request on their premises and on the healthcare management information system.

- Ensure that rights and obligations of patients and medical practitioners defined herein are upheld.

- Provide necessary conditions to enable medical practitioners to render healthcare services.

- Conduct the self-assessment of healthcare quality and publicly announce results of quality assessment in accordance with clause 3 and 5 of Article 58 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023.

- Follow staff mobilization and dispatch decisions of competent bodies or persons in response to a natural disaster, calamity, group-A infectious disease or a state of emergency.

- Set up security forces; provide physical facilities necessary to ensure security and order at hospital according to the form of organization and scale or size of operation; cooperate with competent police departments in carrying out measures to ensure security and order at hospital; report patient cases that are victims of violence or abuse to competent local police departments in order to work with them to take measures to protect these patients.

- Refer and transfer patients to other medical establishments capable of dealing with a patient's clinical condition and needs if:

+ the medical establishment concludes that the patient case goes beyond its professional competence or lies outside of its scope of operation.

+ such referral or transfer is demanded by the patient or his/her representative, and approved by the medical practitioner who directly treat the patient, or by the clinical shift worker;

+ the medical establishment referring or transferring the patient is subject to temporary suspension or termination of its operation, or revocation of its operating license;

+ the medical establishment referring or transferring the patient faces a force majeure situation to the extent of being unable to continue the receipt and treatment of the patient needing medical care.

- Participate in preventive healthcare activities as prescribed by law.

- Buy medical professional liability insurance in accordance with the Government's regulations.

Mai Thanh Loi

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