VietNamNet Bridge – Spending for medicines accounts for 60 percent of the total medical expenditures. Owing to gaps in management of medicine price and filling prescriptions, medicine expenditure has become a burden for Vietnamese patients.

On June 8, Ms. Quynh from Dong Da district, Hanoi went to St. Paul Hospital for a check-up. After paying VND70,000 ($3.5) of fee, she was examined. The doctor said that she suffered from stomach pain and wrote out two kinds of medicines for her, totaling VND300,000 ($15). The expenditure for medicines is four times more than the examination fee.

At the Central Pediatrics Hospital in Hanoi, parents of a child patient named Nguyen Van Nguyen from Hung Yen province had to pay VND1.6 million ($80) just to buy cod-liver oil and tonics to supplement calcium, iron and vitamins after the child was diagnosed to be mentally retarded.

There are prescriptions with over ten kinds of medicines, worth hundred USD.

According to a report from the Vietnam Drug Administration, per capita spending on medicine has increased highly in recent years.

In 2001, it was $6/person. The figure rose to $6.7 in 2002, $13.39 in 2007 and $27.6 in 2011. The Vietnam Drug Administration said that the number will be $33.8 in 2014.

Medicine prices vary

The prices for medicines are chaotic. The same medicine has different prices at different drugstores and medicine prices are many times higher than the original prices.

For example, Meroprem active element imported from Uruguay by the Bach Mai Hospital and Central Hematology and Blood Transfusion Hospital in Hanoi is priced at VND650,000/unit ($32) while the same product, imported by the Vietnam-Cuba Dong Hoi Hospital in Quang Binh province is priced VND730,000/unit ($36).

Another medicine, Inimod 30g is priced at VND11,490/tablet ($0.6) at the Hue Central Hospital and VND9,930/table ($0.45) at the Huu Nghi Hospital.

According to VietNamNet’s information, this medicine is imported into Vietnam at the price of VND2,000/pill ($0.1).

According to a market survey conducted by the Vietnam General Association of Medicine and Pharmacy in June, the average price increase on domestic drugs was higher than on their foreign counterparts.
 
As per the survey, the price on domestic drugs had increased by 5 to 10 percent, much higher than that on foreign drugs.

For instance, among 4,664 varieties of local drugs, 28 saw a surge of   9.37 percent in price while 32 foreign drugs leaped only by 6.4 percent.

More noticeable were six domestic drugs that reduced by 3.11 percent while 15 imported counterparts went down by 7.3 per cent.

The association forecasts an increase in price on both domestic and foreign medicines in July due to rise in raw material for production and other manufacturing costs.

Concerning the abuse of drugs issued to health insurance holders, the Vietnam Insurance Company has just sent an official document to its local sub-divisions asking to strictly monitor payment of these drugs, namely, Glutathion for injection and for oral use; Glucosamin for oral use; and Arginin for oral and Onithin-L-arpartat for injecting.

As many local medical centers have misused these drugs in prescription for patients with insurance cards, the central insurance company will only pay when these drugs are prescribed for patients’ ailment.

Ngoc Anh