Thirty-two public hospitals in HCM City carried out their own bids for the first time last year, helping reduce shortages of medicine (Photo: tuoitre.vn)
HCM City (VNA) - Thirty-twopublic hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City carried out their own bids for the firsttime last year, helping reduce shortages of medicine.
The remaining 27hospitals in the city cannot carry out their own bids because they do not havea council of experts.
These hospitals will fixprices based on the 32 hospitals’ bidding results and then sign contracts withpharmaceutical companies.
At a press meeting lastweek, Pham Khanh Phong Lan, the Health Department’s deputy head, said thatalthough concentrated bidding carried out by the department had helped savecosts, there was no need for it because there was a large marketof pharmaceutical companies and hospitals in the city.
In concentrated bidding,only some companies win a contract, Lan said, adding that, in this case, thecompanies have problems in providing medicine.
The hospitals that carryout their own bids have more choices of medicine, she said.
To limit the differencebetween the price of medicine paid by the hospitals’ bidding councils, the cityPeople’s Committee allows only a 5 per cent difference.
The results of the firstbidding are expected in the first quarter.
Do Van Dung, head of thedepartment’s medicine management division, said at least 163 bidding packages,at a cost of nearly 9.5 trillion VND (416.7 million USD), were finalised thisyear. This represented an increase of nearly 400 billion VND compared to lastyear.
While waiting for thebidding results, hospitals are allowed to extend contracts with companies whichhad earlier won contracts in the concentrated bidding last year.
The Health Departmenthas asked for a list of medicine bids at hospitals to ensure proper treatmentguidelines and financing, giving priority to Vietnamese-made medicine.
In the city, theproportion of Vietnamese-manufactured medicine at hospitals is 48 percent onaverage. Grassroots-level health facilities have a higher proportion of 60 percent.-VNA
The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health plans to create the best conditions for the private sector to open more family medical clinics to provide comprehensive primary healthcare services.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc requested diversifying all possible resources to develop the Vietnam National Institute of Maritime Medicine (VINIMAM) – the first of its kind in Southeast Asia.
None of Vietnam’s provinces are spending as much as they should on preventive medicine, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam said at a ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of the country’s preventive healthcare system.
The Prime Minister has approved a plan to develop a new local-level medical network by 2025 to improve the capability and service quality of health care for Vietnamese.
Vietnam now boasts a nationwide healthcare network with 1,665 hospitals, 384 of which are non-public, supported by local commune- and ward-level stations. At the end of 2024, hospital bed capacity reached 34 per 10,000 people, slightly above the global average.
The 56-year-old patient from Quang Tri province was discharged in stable condition as he no longer experienced shortness of breath and was able to walk, move around, and eat normally.
Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Vu Trung, Director of the Pasteur Institute, said that under the MoU, the two sides committed to promoting diverse and practical collaborative activities, including joint conferences and workshops, exchanges of scholars, researchers and students, sharing academic materials, and the development of specific programmes and projects in scientific research, training, and epidemic prevention.
TytoCare, a leading Israeli telemedicine company based in Netanya, is willing to work with Vietnamese regulators, insurers, and healthcare providers to develop a sustainable digital health ecosystem.
The partnership is under the framework of a Memorandum of Understanding on the development and implementation of the National Action Plan on Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control, signed in Hanoi on July 22.
An estimated 7 million Vietnamese are currently living with diabetes, but about 50% remain undiagnosed, a dangerous gap that is fuelling serious, preventable complications and increasing the burden on the healthcare system.
In 2024, Vietnam achieved 99% coverage for the first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine, up from 80% in 2023. Immunisation coverage in the country has not only rebounded to the high levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic but has now surpassed the rates recorded in 2019.
Health authorities in HCM City have issued an urgent alert after six people died from dengue fever, amid a spike in infections driven by the onset of the rainy season.
During the peak months of July and August 2025, the National Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion (NIHBT) needs at least 90,000 units of blood to supply 180 hospitals in the northern region. However, despite continuous efforts, the reserve blood is still short of 30,000 units.
The Hanoi ceremony highlighted efforts to ensure all citizens, especially women and youth, can access accurate information and healthcare services to make informed reproductive choices.
After such a long time, the law has revealed many limitations, prompting the Ministry of Health (MoH) to gather opinions to amend the law to give more chances to thousands of patients every year.
Currently, cardiovascular specialists from the 108 Military Central Hospital are working alongside a team of Prof.Dr. Jan D. Schmitto, Deputy Director of MHH’s Department of Cardiac, Thoracic, Transplantation and Vascular Surgery on clinical trials for MCS devices, implanted in heart failure patients either as a bridge to transplantation or as permanent treatment.
The centre not only serves residents living on the island, but also receives tens of thousands of visitors every year, according to Assoc Prof Dr Tang Chi Thuong, Director of the HCM CIty Department of Health.
Not only does Vietnam attract international tourists with its landscapes, culture, and cuisine, but it is also gradually becoming a reliable destination for medical treatment, offering high-quality services at reasonable costs.
Over the past six months, 150 communal health stations in provinces including Ha Giang, Bac Kan, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Yen Bai, Tay Ninh, Hau Giang, Ben Tre and Ca Mau have been equipped with information technology systems. In addition, 117 key provincial healthcare workers have received training, with thousands more expected to follow.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the Ministry of Health swiftly launched a telemedicine programme, connecting more than 1,000 medical establishments nationwide. The model, which remains in operation, has benefited tens of thousands of patients, including foreign nationals.
After more than three weeks of intensive treatment, the patient's pneumonia improved, breathing stabilised, sedation was reduced, and the breathing tube was removed. He is now conscious, able to eat orally, and in recovery.
Thirty-two public hospitals in HCM City carried out their own bids for the first time last year, helping reduce shortages of medicine (Photo: tuoitre.vn) 
