The Ministry of Health has completed a draft decree which adjusts the currenthospital fees to provide better health care treatment for patients, according toMinister Nguyen Quoc Trieu.

According to the minister, some types ofmedical treatment would be subject to an increase in cost to improve treatmentquality at central and district-level hospitals.

The cost of serviceswhich require modern medical equipment and technology would be increased tobalance out investment while services funded by the State’s budget would riseonly slightly.

Viet-Duc (Vietnam-Germany) Hospital director Nguyen TienQuyet said the current fees are not reasonable or proper.

For example, aliver operation requires tens of doctors and nurses and modern medicalequipment, but the cost of 2-2.5 million VND (105-131 USD) is not enough, hesaid.

Nguyen Thanh Liem, head of the central Paediatric Hospital , saidthe current fees were set in 1995 and are no longer appropriate in2010.

For example, a patient is charged 10,000 VND (0.5 USD) per day fora hospital stay while the real cost is around 296,000 VND (15 USD) perday.

However, many patients are concerned about the planned increase.

Nguyen Thi Thin, a cancer patient from northern Hung Yen province, saidher first week of treatment cost her nearly 8 million VND (421 USD).

“Idon’t know what to do if the fees keep rising. My disease is complicated andrequires long-term treatment,” Thin said.

“Increasing fees must meanhigher quality services and better doctors and nurses. Unless they can guaranteethis, they shouldn’t increase them,” said patient Nguyen Phuong Linh.
Thedraft decree will be sent to ministries, agencies and hospitals for feedbackbefore being submitted to the Government./.