This information was given at the National Conference on the implementation of Circular No. 01/2025/TT-BYT dated January 1, 2025 of the Minister of Health detailing and guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Health Insurance on the morning of January 2, 2025.
At the conference, a representative of K Hospital shared: "On the night of December 31, 2024, we still worked late at night to contact and discuss work with experts from the Department of Health Insurance. On the morning of January 1, 2025, we continued to work on the implementation of Circular 01, proposing ideas on health insurance for cancer patients. More than 20,000 cancer patients did not have to apply for a referral letter for the new year to K Hospital on the first day of the new year 2025."
"Thus, we have seen the immediate effectiveness of the Circular, patients have benefited" - Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan said.
According to Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan, Circular No. 01 issued to replace Circular No. 40/2015/TT-BYT regulating initial registration for health insurance examination and treatment and referral for health insurance examination and treatment was issued by the Minister of Health in 2015 to overcome difficulties, limitations and obstacles in the implementation of Circular No. 40, while at the same time being consistent with new regulations of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment and the Law amending and supplementing the Law on Health Insurance.
"The Circular is an important document guiding the initial registration for health insurance examination and treatment and transferring health insurance examination and treatment facilities to over 13,000 health examination and treatment facilities nationwide, creating a synchronous legal corridor for effective implementation of health insurance policies in the new period," Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan emphasized.
Ms. Tran Thi Trang, Director of the Department of Health Insurance, Ministry of Health, Circular 01 said that the issuance of a list of some rare diseases, serious diseases, diseases requiring surgery or using high technology with 100% benefit level according to the scope, the patient's rights are to go directly to a specialized medical examination and treatment facility, without having to have a referral form to a medical examination and treatment facility, including a list of 62 diseases, groups of diseases that are examined and treated at a specialized medical examination and treatment facility;
List of 167 diseases and groups of diseases that can be examined and treated at basic medical examination and treatment facilities; list of 141 diseases and groups of diseases that can be transferred to medical examination and treatment facilities within 01 year from the date of signing the transfer form instead of the transfer form expiring at the end of the calendar year.
"This is a particularly meaningful regulation in improving the quality of medical examination and treatment so that patients can access and promptly treat a number of diseases that require specialized expertise that basic and initial facilities are not qualified to implement, contributing to reducing procedures for transferring medical examination and treatment facilities for patients, reducing costs of moving and transporting patients, saving costs that need to be implemented at lower levels just to transfer patients to higher levels and other costs related to patients' relatives during the care and treatment process.
This will help reduce household out-of-pocket expenses related to medical examination and treatment, and at the same time contribute to effective use of the health insurance fund," said Ms. Tran Thi Trang.
At the same time, it stipulates the list of diseases, groups of diseases and cases that are initially transferred for management and enjoy benefits of drugs and medical equipment according to the professional instructions of higher technical facilities. This regulation both ensures the rights of patients to be managed, monitored and use new, quality drugs and medical equipment and the grassroots health system has better conditions for technical development.
