The Vietnam Social Security (VSS) said the social insurance sector achieved good results in all targets and plans by the end of July, particularly in social insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance, overdue social and health insurance debts, administrative simplification, and pension payment.
More than 100 million people enjoy health-insured services
According to VSS, in the first seven months of 2018, social insurance and unemployment insurance settled for employees at all levels were implemented more quickly thanks to simplified procedures.
In July 2018 alone, the sector settled 9,351 pension records and monthly social insurance allowances; 80,469 beneficiaries of one-paid allowances; and 903,258 persons entitled to sickness, maternity, health and rehabilitation benefits. In the first seven months of the year, the sector deal with 69,206 pension records and monthly social insurance allowances; settled 456,898 beneficiaries of one-time allowances; and 5,753,418 people entitled to sickness, maternity, health and rehabilitation benefits. The country saw about 15.27 million health-insured workers hospitalised in July, totalling 100.16 million cases from January to July.
Furthermore, VSS cooperated with the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs to solve 83,995 unemployment insurance cases and 4,418 vocational training allowances. In the first seven months of the year, 373,887 people got unemployment insurance benefits and 18,986 people were paid for vocational training.
The sector paid social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance of VND25,389 billion (over US$1 billion) in July, adding up to VND173,082 billion (US$7.4 billion) in the January - July period, fulfilling 58.79 per cent of the full-year plan. Of the sum, social insurance fund sourced from the State Budget accounted for VND25,773 trillion and from the Social Insurance Fund was VND87,020 billion. The Unemployment Insurance Fund paid VND4,452 billion and the medical insurance spending was estimated at VND55,837 billion.
VSS already issued a number of instructive documents, including the decision on promulgation of the Code of Conduct for civil servants and employees working in the Vietnamese social insurance sector; the decision on amendments and supplements to a number of articles of the regulation on specialised inspection of social insurance and health insurance; the decision on strengthening administrative reform of the social insurance sector; the official gazette guiding some tasks of social insurance and health insurance agents; the official gazette on drug price, health service index.
Especially, VSS directed local social security authorities to strengthen administrative procedure reform; apply information technology to administration; intensify the specialised inspection and reduce social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance debts; step up cooperation with the health sector to control unreasonable costs at insurance-covered health facilities.
Actively preventing health insurance profiteering
To better apply social insurance and health insurance policies to better serve the people, VSS will have more aggressive measures to prevent health insurance profiteering in the coming time.
Specifically, VSS continued to accelerate the inspection and control of health insurance costs; intensify the implementation of electronic surveys at all medical facilities, and resolutely refuse claims for unreasonable or improper expenses.
The Vietnam Social Security will also bolster the examination, specialised inspection and extraordinary inspection into entities owing social insurance and health insurance premiums; timely handle and propose settlements for violations of social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance; and increase social insurance and health insurance policyholders.
In addition, the sector continued to complete handing over insurance books to employees as per the Law on Social Insurance; coordinated with concerned bodies in studying and finalising draft decrees on granting, management and use of electronic health insurance cards to be submitted to the Prime Minister; further improve insurance software programmes; step up the management and use of electronic documents in Vietnam's social insurance system; and carry out cooperation with central and local authorities.
The Vietnam Social Security will accelerate administrative procedure reform as per the Resolutions 19 of the Government on major tasks and solutions for better business environment and higher national competitiveness and the Resolution 36a/NQ-CP of 2015 on e-Government. Particularly, VSS will focus on quickening information technology application to management, building and perfecting professional software, constructing a centralised database system, and exchanging data with medical facilities. It will strive to complete apply IT according to the roadmap, particularly to works that serve people and enterprises; and boost communications to help people and enterprises understand rights and obligations of social insurance and health insurance participation.
In August 2018, VSS will continue to coordinate with relevant bodies to study and develop the project “Renovating and rearranging VSS apparatus for higher quality and better operation” to submit to the Prime Minister.
As of July 31, 2018, as many as 13.94 million people registered for compulsory social insurance; 230,000 people bought voluntary social insurance; 11.89 million people used unemployment insurance; and 81.69 million people were covered by health insurance, or 87.2 per cent of the population.
The social insurance sector fetched VND26,703 billion of revenue in July, grossing VND178,823 billion in the year to the end of July, fulfilling 54.2 per cent of the full-year plan, of which social insurance premiums accounted for VND121,763 billion, unemployment insurance premiums amounted at VND8,579 billion, and health insurance revenue was VND48,480 billion.
Ha Thu
Vietnamese
