The Vietnam Social Security (VSS) and the Danish Embassy in Vietnam signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), on August 21, to strengthen healthcare cooperation between the two countries.

At the signing ceremony. (Source: Danish Embassy)

The main aim of the MOU is to facilitate knowledge exchange of non-communicable diseases, health insurance policies, health-care development as well as to advance health economics. Under the document, the Danish Embassy will organise training courses on capacity enhancement in Vietnam and fund short-term courses in Denmark for the VSS staff. Best practices will also be shared between the two countries via potential study visits and international scientific conferences.

The MOU initially lasts until 2020 and might be extended by other areas of collaborations upon mutual agreement.

Deputy Ambassador of Denmark in Vietnam, Louise Holmsgaard, said that health care is one of the top priorities in the two countries’ development cooperation. She lauded the VSS’s achievements in patient information management and health insurance coverage, adding that health insurance is crucial to promoting primary health care.

The MoU will be an important stride to help improve the capacity of the VSS’s health insurance verification specialists, enhancing the management of the health insurance fund, she noted.

VSS Deputy General Director, Dao Viet Anh, said health insurance covers approximately 84.5 million people or more than 87 per cent of Vietnam’s population and this coverage is almost 100 per cent among students.

However, there remain challenges such as low insurance premiums and high medical service prices. Therefore, he hoped that the cooperation with the Danish Embassy will help the VSS to learn from other countries’ experience in insurance fund management and insurance verification, addressing difficulties, developing health insurance sustainably and expanding partnerships to other areas./.

VNF