The Ministry of Health has just issued Circular No. 40/2025/TT-BYT completely replacing Circular No. 07/2024/TT-BYT dated May 17, 2024, to ensure consistency and updating according to new legal regulations on drug bidding.
Circular 40 regulates the bidding of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, biological products, traditional medicine, medicinal herbs and gases licensed for circulation to serve medical examination and treatment. The content includes: dividing the bidding package, the contractor selection process and the drug centralization mechanism.
The Circular does not apply to cases of purchasing drugs under State orders, drugs for military medicine, health care in detention facilities, blood and blood products, as well as drug purchases from autonomous capital of public service units, unless the unit voluntarily applies.
According to the Ministry of Health, the adjustments in Circular 40 are expected to remove legal obstacles and ensure a stable source of drugs for public hospitals.
Completing legal basis, avoiding drug shortage: Circular 40 is built on the basis of new laws and decrees such as Law No. 90/2025/QH15, Law No. 57/2024/QH15 and Decree No. 214/2025/ND-CP, helping to increase legality, synchronization and reduce the risk of disruption in drug procurement.
More clearly about scope, subjects and authority: Circular detailing the types of drugs allowed for bidding, clarifying the scope of application to financially autonomous units, in line with the orientation of increasing hospital autonomy.
At the same time, the authority approving the contractor selection plan is delegated to the investor without having to appraise the documents as before.
Update regulations on dividing packages and drug groups: The principles of dividing packages and drug groups are inherited from Circular 07, and at the same time adjusted to comply with new regulations on registration for circulation, classification of pharmaceuticals, biological equivalent drugs, processed drugs and technology transfer.
Supplementing regulations on handling changes in drugs during bidding: Circular 40 allows replacement of drugs in cases where drugs are bid or are awarded for information changes but replacement drugs are not yet included in the bidding documents, helping to ensure timely supply for medical examination and treatment.
Complete regulations on traditional medicine and medicinal herbs: Circular supplementing regulations on traditional medicine, traditional medicine and medicinal herbs in case of information changes or contractors, and at the same time updating to comply with Pharmacy Law No. 44/2024/QH15, ensuring favorable bidding.
Clearly decentralize responsibilities in centralized procurement: National and local centralized procurement units now have the authority to approve contractor selection plans. The Ministry of Health and the Department of Health clearly stipulate the coordination mechanism, shortening processing time when bidding is unsuccessful.
The Ministry of Health said that the issuance of Circular 40/2025/TT-BYT is necessary to ensure continuous drug supply, avoiding drug shortages at public hospitals. These new points clearly demonstrate the orientation of improving quality, efficiency and transparency in drug bidding activities.
In the coming time, the Ministry of Health will continue to receive opinions from units and improve additional regulations to remove difficulties in drug bidding at public health facilities.
