Vietnam streamlines health insurance reimbursement procedures

Vietnam is implementing new procedures to simplify health insurance reimbursements. Under Decree 188/2025/NĐ-CP, patients who have participated in continuous health insurance for five years or more and have out-of-pocket expenses exceeding six months of the base salary can now receive reimbursements directly at medical examination and treatment facilities. Previously, patients had to manually submit dossiers to Social Security agencies, a process that was time-consuming and burdensome.

In clinical practice, health insurance continues to play a critical role in managing high-cost treatments. At E Hospital in Hanoi, a 62-year-old lung cancer patient with brain metastases was able to stabilize after three weeks of treatment, paying only 1.8 million VND out-of-pocket while insurance covered the majority of the 37.7 million VND total cost.

However, challenges remain for certain chronic conditions. For dialysis patients, even with insurance coverage, significant monthly out-of-pocket costs persist. At Cho Ray Hospital, patients often pay extra for specialized supplies, such as single-use tubing and high-frequency filter membranes, which are used more often than standard regulations allow to ensure patient safety and prevent infection.