Vietnam’s most severely ill COVID-19 patient numbered 91 is supported by a ventilator during his treatment Cho Ray Hospital and earlier at HCM City Hospital for Tropical Disease (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - With ventilatorsseen as essential to saving the lives of severely ill COVID-19 patients, themassive pricing gap among breathing machines bought by hospitals nationwide hastriggered public scepticism.
Amid the pandemic, global demand forventilators has rocketed. However, there is a significant difference in eachmachine's price.
The Ministry of Public Security (MPS)recently launched an inspection into medical facilities’ procurement, Thanh nien (Young people) newspaper hasreported.
On July 5, Quang Nam Province’s Department ofHealth said the provincial People’s Committee had used more than 6 billion VND(260,000 USD) from the public budget to buy seven fully-equipped ventilatorsand 630 million VND (27,000 USD) for seven portable air compressors, all madeby US-based General Electric.
These machines were then distributed to fourlocal hospitals which treat COVID-19 patients.
Earlier, two of the nation’s top-tierhospitals, Cho Ray in HCM City and Bach Mai in Hanoi purchased the same type ofventilators at different prices – 850 million VND (36,700 USD) and 640 millionVND (27,600 USD), respectively. The cost gap was 210 million VND (9,000 USD).
Doctor Nguyen Tri Thuc, Director of the Cho RayHospital, said they bought three high-end ventilators produced by GEHealthcare. The machines were included in the hospital’s annual procurementplan, not for COVID-19 response and therefore, were not purchased using thenational budget for disease control and prevention. The plan was approved bythe Ministry of Health (MoH).
The difference in prices, according to Thuc,is due to additional functions the hospital required.
“These ventilators can measure blood andbronchi oxygen levels, monitor electrocardiography, analyse bloodpressure, etc. We had to pay more for these functions,” said Thuc.
In Da Nang City, Doctor Le Duc Nhan, the cityhospital’s director, said it had nearly 80 ventilators before the outbreak. Inlate January, the city’s Department of Health equipped it with two moreportable ventilators.
Nhan said the functions of ventilators werediverse. “Based on options, performance, retailers and producers, aventilator can cost 200 million VND (8,600 USD) up to 2 billion VND (86,300 USD),the same way you buy a car,” said Nhan.
The most expensive ventilator in Vietnam,costing 1.45 billion VND (62,600 USD), belongs to the Central Highlandsprovince of Gia Lai.
The breathing machine, coded Carescape R860,was included in a package of medical equipment for COVID-19 response valued 8.6billion VND approved by Gia Lai Province Department of Health in April.
A ventilator with the same model of CarescapeR860 was bought by Khanh Hoa Province’s Department of Health inAugust last year for only 789.5 million VND (34,000 USD). The Gia LaiProvince People’s Committee has tasked inspectors to determine the reason forthe price difference.
“According to the initial information we havegot, it was the same type of breathing machine but the ventilator that Gia LaiProvince General Hospital bought was Carescape R860 Metabolic-FRC - nebulizer.This unit has additional functions such as nutritionalevaluation, functional residual capacity tool, gas analysismodule and so on,” said a representative of the provincial Department ofHealth.
Pham Ba My, Director of the Gia Lai ProvinceGeneral Hospital, said the machine had not been used as the province had notreported any case of COVID-19.
“The ventilator is now sealed for inspection.The purchase was strictly monitored. Gia Lai Province’s breathing machinehas the highest configuration with more than five additional functions,” said My.
The machine used in Khanh Hoa has performedwell in supporting COVID-19 patients, said Doctor Nguyen Dong, director of KhanhHoa Hospital for Tropical Diseases.
“As all patients have been discharged, themachine is not in use,” said Dong.
The MoH is investigating the “real” prices ofventilators, according to Nguyen Minh Tuan, head of the ministry’s Departmentof Medical Equipment and Facilities.
“As localities organise bidding forprocurement on their own, we do not know why prices highly differ,” said Tuan.
“The same equipment might be bought atdifferent costs, depending on manufacturers’ policies or logisticexpenses. However, the gap cannot be too obvious,” he added.
“Evaluating and comparing to determine thereasonable price in the procurement of medical equipment is quite difficult butit can be done. The MoH is determining the 'real', reasonable prices formedical equipment to be procured, firstly for testing machines,” he said.
Earlier in April, seven officials from Hanoi’sCentre for Disease Control (CDC) and related companies, including the centre'sdirector Nguyen Nhat Cam, were arrested for a COVID-19 testing machinefraud.
The defendants confessed to police they hadjacked up the price of the machines and promised to return the money,according to MPS./.
VNA
