On April 20, the Ministry of Health continued to hold a meeting to urge the progress of implementing the second facility project of Bach Mai Hospital and Viet Duc Friendship Hospital.
At the meeting, contractors said that they are making efforts to implement the assigned tasks but still face many difficulties in the process of construction, installation as well as payment in some bidding packages. Representatives of the Medical Works Project Management Board further clarified the proposed contents, and exchanged views on solutions to problems arising in practice.
Deputy Minister of Health Le Duc Luan requested the Project Management Board to coordinate with the Department of Planning and Finance to review and fully supplement the contents on the current situation, difficulties, and obstacles that have been mentioned. According to the Deputy Minister, the meeting conclusion notice must fully reflect the context, causes, and basis of the directions to ensure transparency and facilitate the implementation process.
Regarding the fire prevention and fighting item, the leader of the Ministry of Health emphasized that contractors must focus on deploying it based on current regulations and the spirit of Government resolutions. This item is closely linked to the system that has been constructed, so if a separate bidding is organized, it will be difficult to meet the progress. Therefore, contractors are required to closely coordinate with the Project Management Board to continue deploying, and at the same time be flexible in organizing implementation, and can separate or merge some tasks to accelerate progress, soon complete the estimate and sign contract appendices.
Regarding technical solutions, the Deputy Minister requested the Project Management Board to continue working with specialized agencies such as Department C07 (Ministry of Public Security), Ministry of Construction to agree on appropriate handling plans. In which, it is necessary to clearly identify items that need to be built additionally, early fire control solutions or the application of foreign standards according to the correct procedures. Works that do not depend on the remaining problems must be proactively implemented immediately, avoiding affecting the overall progress.
Regarding the payment mechanism, Deputy Minister Le Duc Luan agreed in principle to temporarily pay 90% of the value for some bidding packages to create resources for contractors to continue construction. For bidding packages that have not been approved for estimates, the Ministry of Health will summarize and report to propose appropriate mechanisms for submission to the Government for consideration. For arising items related to fire prevention and fighting, the advance amount may be considered higher within the scope of authority to ensure implementation progress.
The Deputy Minister also requested the investor and contractors to strengthen coordination in completing quality dossiers, payment dossiers and promptly handle arising issues. The Ministry of Health will continue to coordinate with relevant ministries and sectors to remove difficulties in the payment mechanism, and at the same time request units to urgently complete dossiers and send necessary proposals within the day to summarize reports, avoiding delays.
Deputy Minister Le Duc Luan said that the Ministry of Health will continue to accompany and remove difficulties to ensure the progress and quality of the project. Leaders of the Ministry also requested relevant units to improve their sense of responsibility, closely coordinate, and focus on definitively resolving the key issues that still exist to soon bring the 2 projects to completion as required.
