According to the Global Cancer Organization, each year Vietnam discovers 180,000 new cases and over 123,000 deaths from cancer, and patients still have to pay up to 70% of treatment costs themselves.
This means that for every 100,000 people, there are 105.6 new cancer cases, Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan said at the workshop. Policy Dialogue Applying health technology assessment in payment decisions for cancer drugs organized by the Institute of Health Strategy and Policy, Ministry of Health in collaboration with AstraZeneca Vietnam, on August 23.
The burden of self-paying for treatment costs for patients
According to estimates by the World Health Organization (WHO), by 2040, the number of new cancer cases in Vietnam will increase by about 59.4%, and the number of cancer deaths will increase by about 70.3%. In Vietnam, cancer is the second leading cause of death, after cardiovascular diseases.
The burden of disease due to cancer accounts for 10% of the total disease burden, the largest among ASEAN countries. According to Deputy Minister Thuan, the cost of cancer treatment is also a major burden on the economy and society. The expenditure on cancer drugs in Vietnam in 2023 is more than 7,500 billion VND, ranking first in the total drug payment from the Health Insurance Fund (HIF).
“From the patient’s perspective, the burden of paying out of pocket for cancer treatment is huge. Vietnam has the highest rate of cancer patients incurring costs among ASEAN countries, with 37.4% of patients falling into poverty due to having to pay such high cancer treatment costs,” he said.
According to hospital statistics, the cost of many cancers fluctuates on average around 175 million VND per year. Of this, patients have to pay up to 70% themselves.
Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan at the Policy Dialogue Workshop “Application of health technology assessment in payment decisions for cancer treatment drugs” on August 23. Photo: Thuc Linh
Health technology assessment is an essential tool
According to Mr. Thuan, currently about 93.5% of the population has health insurance, enjoys health insurance benefits, and has health insurance cover the cost of cancer treatment. In particular, cancer drugs are a “lifesaver” for hundreds of thousands of patients and their families. To date, there are 69 cancer drugs in the list of drugs covered by health insurance out of a total of 1,037 drugs in the list of chemical and biological drugs within the scope of benefits for health insurance participants.
Deputy Minister Thuan stated that Vietnam currently has many new generation advanced treatment drugs that are highly effective in treating cancer. Among the drugs proposed to be added to the list of drugs covered by health insurance, there are many cancer drugs that are effective, but incur high costs, affecting the fund’s ability to balance.
Therefore, Mr. Thuan commented that applying medical technology assessment in the decision to pay for cancer treatment drugs plays an important role in ensuring effective use of the health insurance budget, helping people access modern treatment methods.
“In the world, health technology assessment is a useful tool, providing evidence for policy making, especially in considering including drugs in the health insurance drug list,” said Mr. Thuan.
During the workshop, Dr. Nguyen Khanh Phuong, Director of the Institute of Health Strategy and Policy, also said that applying technology assessment is an important tool to help management agencies have information and scientific evidence that is accurate in many aspects, including treatment effectiveness, safety, cost-effectiveness, and the ability to impact the health insurance fund budget.
Applying appropriate and effective technology assessment in Vietnam helps optimize resources, ensure people have access to advanced and effective treatments, reduce the burden of cancer as well as increase the sustainability of the health system.
At the workshop, experts from Australia and Thailand also shared their experiences on how to apply health technology assessment to optimize payment decisions and balance costs and treatment effectiveness. The proposed solutions include establishing separate procedures for cancer drugs, applying risk-sharing models and establishing a separate fund for cancer drugs. This will be the basis for improving health insurance policies, ensuring the sustainability of the fund and patients’ access to modern treatment methods.