Nghe An: More Support to Help Near-Poor Residents Buy Health Insurance

The north central province of Nghe An plans to increase financial aid to help members of near-poor families buy health insurance over the next few years. The financial assistance will be gradually raised from 10% of health insurance costs this year to 15% in 2017 and 30% in 2020. Nghe An has high rates of households living under and near the poverty line. Meanwhile, a project on medical assistance for north central coastal provinces since 2011 stopped supporting near-poor people’s health insurance from this year, and hospital fees are scheduled to increase. Therefore, more financial aid to help those living near the poverty line is necessary, local authorities said. About 128,000 near-poor residents are benefitting from health insurance support, while 32,100 have not held health insurance cards this year, according to the provincial Department of Health. Nghe An estimates nearly VND40 billion ($1.79 million) is needed to help near-poor families buy health insurance in the first half of 2016. (http://en.vietnamplus.vn/ March 30)