National centralized drug procurement center established

The center is tasked with organizing bidding for procurement of the drugs on the list subject to national centralized procurement promulgated by the Health Ministry, and organizing price negotiation for the drugs on the list subject to price negotiation in accordance with the law.

The center has legal status as well as its own seal and bank account as stipulated by law.

The Health Minister specifies the duties, rights and organizational structure of the national centralized drug procurement center.

In 2015-2016, Viet Nam had 56 localities taking in centralized drug bidding procurement, three localities employing representative bidding and four localities making single bidding. There were a total of 119 drug bidding councils across the country.

The national centralized drug procurement bidding is a decisive solution to improving the effectiveness of using health insurance funds for medical check-ups and treatment, enhancing the fund balancing capability and ensuring the rights for patients with health insurance.

                                                                                                                                             By Vien Nhu