Politburo: Starting in 2026, citizens will be entitled to free periodic health check-ups, with a gradual implementation of basic hospital fee exemptions.

According to Resolution No. 72-NQ/TW of the Political Bureau, starting in 2026, citizens will be entitled to free periodic health check-ups or screening examinations at least once a year. By 2030, citizens will gradually be exempted from basic hospital fees within the scope of health insurance benefits, in accordance with the prescribed roadmap.

By 2030, citizens will be exempted from basic hospital fees.

The resolution clearly sets out the targets to be achieved by 2030 regarding the improvement of the population’s physical fitness, intellectual capacity, stature, and healthy life expectancy.

By 2030, the average height of children and adolescents aged 1 to 18 will increase by at least 1.5 cm; the average life expectancy will reach 75.5 years, of which the number of healthy life years will be at least 68.

Reduce the disease burden and control risk factors affecting health. The vaccination rate for vaccines under the essential immunization program will reach over 95%.

The proportion of people who regularly engage in physical activity will increase by 10%. Control over health risk factors—such as alcohol, beer, tobacco use, and environmental factors from soil, water, and air—will be further strengthened.

People will have access to quality medical services, moving toward comprehensive health care. Starting in 2026, citizens will be entitled to free periodic health check-ups or screening examinations at least once a year, will be provided with an electronic health record to manage their health across the life cycle, and will gradually see a reduction in the financial burden of medical expenses.

By 2030, citizens will be exempted from basic hospital fees within the scope of health insurance benefits, in accordance with the prescribed roadmap.

100% of commune-level health stations will be equipped with facilities, medical equipment, and human resources in accordance with their assigned functions and tasks; by 2027, each station will have at least 4 to 5 doctors.

Increase the rate of health insurance medical examinations and treatments at commune-level health stations to over 20%.

By 2026, health insurance coverage will reach over 95% of the population, and by 2030, universal health insurance coverage will be achieved; various forms of health insurance will be further developed.

With a vision toward 2045, efforts will be made to achieve a high-quality living environment, with the population’s health indicators and the coverage of essential health care services on par with developed countries in the region and around the world.

The average life expectancy of the population will exceed 80 years, with the number of healthy life years increasing to over 71.

The stature, physical fitness, and average height of young people will be comparable to those of countries with a similar level of development. The health care system will be modern, equitable, efficient, and sustainable, prioritizing disease prevention and meeting the population’s increasingly high and diverse health care needs.

Each year, localities will rotate, transfer, or assign at least 1,000 doctors to work on a fixed-term basis at commune-level health stations.

The resolution also calls for the timely improvement of institutions, with a focus on strengthening the capacity of the health system—particularly preventive medicine and primary health care—while promoting the strengths of traditional medicine.

Specifically, comprehensively improve the institutional framework and effectively implement legal provisions on the protection, care, and improvement of public health during the 2026–2030 period.

Focus on finalizing and promulgating the Laws on Population, Disease Prevention, Food Safety, Medical Equipment, Traditional Medicine, and others, ensuring the timely resolution of difficulties and obstacles to meet practical requirements.

Streamline the health system to be compact and efficient, in line with the three-tier administrative model, ensuring timely coordination and support among the different professional levels of the health system.

Continue to reorganize and transfer certain hospitals under the Ministry of Health to provincial management, while the Ministry of Health will retain management of a number of high-tech, specialized, leading hospitals to carry out tasks such as providing professional guidance, training high-quality human resources, conducting scientific research, transferring technology, and coordinating the prevention and control of epidemics, public health emergencies, natural disasters, and health security incidents.

Consolidate and enhance the capacity of the preventive health system in a modern direction, ensuring sufficient capability for surveillance, early warning, and timely containment of epidemics, as well as proactively organizing and implementing disease prevention and control activities. Strengthen the implementation of the Expanded Immunization Program in both coverage and target groups. Implement health management and care throughout the life cycle.

Encourage people to proactively access counseling services, premarital health check-ups, prenatal and newborn screening, and screening for certain common and serious diseases appropriate to each age group and target population.

Improve the quality and effectiveness of primary health care. Focus on refining the functions, tasks, and organizational structure of commune-level health stations under the model of public service units, ensuring the provision of basic and essential services in disease prevention, primary health care, medical examination and treatment, and social care services.

Strengthen and comprehensively enhance the capacity of commune-level health stations in terms of human resources, ensuring appropriate staffing structures and a sufficient number of doctors in accordance with their functions and tasks; maintain the workforce of village and neighborhood health workers, village midwives, and population collaborators as required; and ensure essential infrastructure, medicines, and basic medical equipment, particularly in remote, disadvantaged, border, and island areas.

During the 2025–2030 period, each year localities will rotate, transfer, or assign at least 1,000 doctors to work on a fixed-term basis at commune-level health stations; additionally, full-time doctors will be assigned to these stations so that by 2030 each station will have a sufficient number of doctors in accordance with its functions and tasks.

Each commune-level health station will be equipped with sufficient basic medical equipment as prescribed. Health care will be provided following the principles of family medicine, with strengthened connections and support among the different technical and professional levels of the health system, focusing on support for commune-level health stations.

Regional health centers will be organized based on the local population’s health care needs, providing comprehensive and timely services for disease prevention as well as inpatient and outpatient treatment at the basic level. Priority will be given to investing in the development of medical facilities in remote areas, ethnic minority regions, and other disadvantaged locations with limited access to health care services.

Develop specialized health care to meet practical needs and international integration requirements. Promote linkages among hospitals, research institutes, training institutions, and enterprises to advance high-tech, specialized medicine; focus on developing several high-quality specialized medical centers of regional and international standards to attract and expand medical tourism in Vietnam and reduce the outflow of patients seeking treatment abroad. Each province and centrally run city will have at least one hospital at the specialized level, as well as a geriatric hospital or a general hospital with a geriatric department. Develop facilities for elderly care. Continue to improve the rehabilitation service system, ensuring effective coordination between medical facilities and elderly care institutions.

Strengthen the integration of military–civilian medicine and public security health services to promptly respond to public health emergencies and provide health care for people in remote, ethnic minority, and disadvantaged areas. Develop and implement a nationwide emergency medical response system, ensuring effective coordination among medical, public security, and military forces, as well as relevant sectors, to guarantee that people have rapid and timely access to emergency services directly at the scene.

Promote the potential and strengths of traditional medicine. Strengthen state management and enhance the capacity of the traditional medicine system. Integrate traditional medicine with modern medicine in personnel training, disease prevention, and medical examination and treatment. Promote the dissemination of traditional medical knowledge and techniques to the community.

Establish mechanisms to leverage the potential of medicinal herbs, promoting the planning and development of standardized medicinal plant cultivation areas. Preserve traditional knowledge and promote the multifaceted value of medicinal materials, traditional remedies, and methods. Focus on improving the quality of traditional medicine, especially traditional drugs and medicinal herbs, to a level equivalent to that of countries with advanced traditional medicine systems.

"Special incentive" policies for doctors and medical staff

The Resolution of the Political Bureau specifies six groups of tasks and solutions, including the unanimous decision to designate World Health Day, April 7 each year, as National Health Day.

Continue to reorganize and transfer certain hospitals under the Ministry of Health to provincial management. During the 2025–2030 period, each year localities will rotate, transfer, or assign at least 1,000 doctors to work on a fixed-term basis at commune-level health stations.

Assign full-time doctors to commune-level health stations so that by 2030 each station will have a sufficient number of doctors in accordance with its functions and tasks. Develop specialized health care to meet practical needs and international integration requirements. Each province and centrally run city will have at least one hospital at the specialized level.

The resolution also calls for the implementation of preferential policies commensurate with the view that the medical profession is a special occupation that must receive special training, utilization, and incentives.

Doctors, preventive medicine doctors, and pharmacists will be placed at salary grade 2 of their recruited professional titles. Special, superior incentive policies will be implemented for medical staff directly engaged in professional work at commune-level health stations and preventive health facilities.

Increase the minimum professional incentive allowance to at least 70% for those who regularly and directly perform medical professional work at commune-level health stations and preventive health facilities.

Provide 100% allowance for those who regularly and directly perform medical professional work at commune-level health stations and preventive health facilities in ethnic minority and mountainous areas, areas with difficult or particularly difficult socio-economic conditions, border and island regions, as well as in the fields of mental health, forensic medicine, forensic psychiatry, emergency and critical care, pathological anatomy, and certain other specialized categories, in line with local economic and social development conditions.

In addition, the development of large-scale private hospitals with advanced specialized technical standards comparable to those of developed countries is especially encouraged. Corporate income tax will not be applied to public or private medical facilities operating on a non-profit basis.

It was unanimously decided to designate World Health Day, April 7 each year, as "National Health Day."

The Resolution of the Political Bureau calls for a strong innovation in thinking and action in leading, directing, and organizing the implementation of tasks for the protection, care, and improvement of public health.

Accordingly, party committees, party organizations, cadres, and party members must thoroughly and deeply grasp the particularly important role of tasks related to the protection, care, and improvement of public health, recognizing them as a central focus of socio-economic policy. Health protection, care, and improvement indicators should be integrated into and prioritized within strategies, plans, and policies for socio-economic development.

Enhance individual and societal awareness, habits, lifestyles, and responsibility in proactively practicing, protecting, and improving health.

Promote the movement for all citizens to proactively care for their health and foster a health-conscious culture among the population. It was unanimously decided to designate World Health Day, April 7 each year, as "National Health Day."

Proactively prevent and strictly control health risk factors to create a healthy living environment.

Reduce the consumption of products harmful to health, especially tobacco, alcohol, and addictive or health-damaging substances.

Place emphasis on mental health care by creating balanced living, working, and learning environments that reduce stress and pressure.

Shift strongly from a treatment-centered mindset to a proactive disease prevention approach.

The resolution clearly states that health is the most precious asset of human beings, the most important foundation for everyone’s happiness, for the survival of the nation, and for the prosperous and sustainable development of the country.

Protecting, caring for, and improving public health is a key objective, a driving force, and a top political task, holding a priority position in development strategies and policies; it is the responsibility of the entire political system, society as a whole, and every citizen.

People are the central subjects and are given the highest priority in the formulation and implementation of policies aimed at strengthening the protection, care, and improvement of physical health, mental health, stature, life expectancy, and healthy life years for comprehensive development. They are entitled to full, fair, and equal access to medical services, with special attention to children, the poor, social policy beneficiaries, and ensuring gender equality.

Focus on training and developing a high-quality, balanced health workforce with sufficient ethical standards and professional competence to meet the requirements and tasks while ensuring public satisfaction; implement preferential and special incentive policies throughout the entire process—from training, recruitment, and utilization to maximizing the capacity and strengths of medical personnel.

Shift strongly from a treatment-centered mindset to proactive disease prevention, emphasizing the comprehensive and continuous protection, care, and improvement of health throughout the life course.

Accurately define the position and role of preventive medicine, primary health care, and traditional medicine; focus on building, improving, and enhancing the capacity of preventive health care and the primary health system to ensure early, local, and community-level disease prevention, and readiness to respond to public health emergencies. Prioritize the development and synchronized investment in human resources, infrastructure, and equipment for commune-level health stations to meet their functions and tasks.

Implement breakthrough policies and mechanisms to mobilize and effectively utilize all resources to improve the quality of public health protection, care, and promotion.