Decision No. 225/2005/QĐ-TTg On approving the Project to upgrade district hospitals and regional general hospitals for the period 2005-2008

DECISION OF THE PRIME MINISTER

Regarding the approval of the Project to upgrade district hospitals and regional general hospitals for the period 2005-2008

and regional general hospitals during the period from 2005 to 2008

PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Pursuant to Decree No. 171/2004/NĐ-CP dated September 29, 2004 of the Government on the organization of specialized agencies under provincial People's Committees and municipal People's Committees directly under the central government; Decree No. 172/2004/NĐ-CP dated September 29, 2004 of the Government on the organization of specialized agencies under district People's Committees, urban district People's Committees, and town People's Committees under provinces;

Pursuant to Directive No. 06/CT-TW dated January 22, 2002 of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam on consolidating and perfecting the primary healthcare network; Resolution No. 46/NQ-TW dated February 23, 2005 of the Politburo on health care work in the new situation;

At the proposal of the Minister of Health, the Minister of Planning and Investment, and the Minister of Finance,

DECISION:

Article 1. Approve the Project to upgrade some district hospitals, urban district hospitals, town hospitals, and city hospitals under provinces (hereinafter referred to collectively as district hospitals) and some regional general hospitals serving multiple districts (hereinafter referred to collectively as regional general hospitals) for the period from 2005 to 2008 with the following main contents:

1. Objectives

Upgrade infrastructure, medical equipment, and enhance the professional capacity of medical staff at district hospitals and some regional general hospitals to bring medical services closer to the people; create favorable conditions for poor people and residents in mountainous, remote, and border areas to access better quality healthcare services, while reducing the overload on higher-level hospitals.

2. Main tasks

- Invest in building new, renovating, and upgrading infrastructure at some district hospitals and regional general hospitals (including some regional general outpatient clinics);

- Purchase essential medical equipment according to the list prescribed by the Ministry of Health, suitable for the scale of each type of hospital;

- Train and improve the professional capacity of medical staff, prioritizing training and improvement in the first two years of implementing the Project to ensure there are sufficient qualified personnel capable of using and maximizing the effectiveness of newly invested equipment.

3. Implementation time: until 2008.

4. Investment capital:

a) The investment capital will be mobilized from the following sources:

- Targeted supplementary budget from the central government for localities;

- Capital from ODA projects;

- Local budget and other lawful sources of capital.

b) The targeted supplementary budget from the central government will prioritize upgrading some district hospitals, regional general hospitals including regional general outpatient clinics in difficult regions, newly divided counties; district hospitals with facilities and equipment that have severely deteriorated but have not been upgraded; district hospitals in mountainous, remote, and border areas or far from provincial hospitals; district hospitals planned to be upgraded into regional general hospitals. The support level will follow the principle below:

- District hospitals in mountainous counties: the central government will provide 100% support;

- District hospitals in plains counties within mountainous provinces: the central government will provide 80% support, and the local budget will allocate 20%;

- District hospitals in counties within remaining provinces: the central government will provide 70% support, and the local budget will allocate 30%;

- Specifically, for nine provinces and cities with large revenue sources including Hanoi, Hai Phong, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Khanh Hoa, Can Tho, Binh Duong, the localities will balance their budgets to implement the Project; the central government will only support some mountainous and island district hospitals of these localities and some district hospitals planned to become regional general hospitals.

c) Training and improvement costs for the Project will be allocated by the Ministry of Health and localities in accordance with the State Budget Law.

d) Provincial People's Committees directly under the central government are responsible for prioritizing allocation from the local budget to ensure sufficient capital for implementing the Project's objectives. For some localities unable to allocate sufficient funds, they must work with the Ministries of Finance, Planning and Investment, and Health to unify and propose reports to the Prime Minister for consideration and resolution.

Article 2. Implementation

1. Establish the Steering Board for the Project to upgrade district hospitals and regional general hospitals for the period 2005-2008 at the central level, chaired by the Minister of Health, with members representing leaders of the Ministries and agencies: Health, Planning and Investment, Finance, Construction, Natural Resources and Environment, Government Office.

The Steering Board is responsible for assisting the Prime Minister in directing the implementation of the Project.

2. The Ministry of Health is the permanent agency of the Project with the following responsibilities:

a) To compile and build annual budget estimates for the Project and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance to develop plans for allocating funds from the central government's supplementary budget to localities, reporting to the Prime Minister. Announce the approved additional capital from the central budget for localities to implement.

b) Guide localities in implementing the Project; annually organize inspections and evaluations of the Project's progress to compile and report to the Prime Minister.

c) Guide and urge localities to manage and implement construction, renovation, expansion of infrastructure, and tender procurement of medical equipment in accordance with the State's investment construction regulations and tendering regulations.

d) Organize and direct the Departments of Health to hold training and improvement courses to enhance the capacity of county-level medical staff.

đ) During the implementation of the Project, if new issues arise, the Ministry of Health shall be responsible for compiling, proposing, and reporting to the Prime Minister for consideration and adjustment as appropriate.

3. The Ministry of Planning and Investment has the following responsibilities:

a) Take the lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to balance and allocate annual investment capital from the central government's budget as stipulated in Clause 4, Article 1 of this Decision for localities to implement.

b) Guide provincial People's Committees and municipal People's Committees directly under the central government to allocate part of the capital self-balanced in the local budget to ensure the implementation of the Project.

c) Coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to guide financial mechanisms to ensure localities have sufficient self-balanced capital.

4. The Ministry of Finance shall have the following responsibilities:

a) Coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to allocate and ensure the funding sources for the Implementation Plan according to the annual plan and schedule.

b) Lead and coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to provide guidance on financial mechanisms to ensure localities can self-balance their funding sources.

c) Guide localities in allocating funds for the operation, maintenance, and repair of machinery and equipment to enhance the efficiency of the invested equipment.

5. Provincial People's Committees under the Central Government shall have the following responsibilities:

a) Establish the Steering Committee for the Upgrading of District General Hospitals and Regional General Hospitals in their locality.

b) Direct the Department of Health to cooperate with relevant agencies based on the approved planning for the development of the healthcare network of the locality to develop projects in accordance with the State Investment Construction Regulations.

c) Be fully responsible for appraising, deciding on investment, approving investment projects, directing the implementation of projects in compliance with current regulations on bidding and investment and construction management. At the same time, direct the organization and allocation of material resources and equipment in an effective manner to avoid waste and loss.

d) Annually allocate from the centralized basic construction investment fund of the locality at least 20% for health, of which at least 30% is allocated for district-level health. Allocate from increased revenue and other legitimate financial sources to ensure the self-balanced portion of the local budget as decided by the Prime Minister and guided by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning and Investment. Use the central government's support funds for projects for their intended purposes. Allocate sufficient funds for the operation and maintenance of invested infrastructure and equipment.

đ) Develop a specific and feasible roadmap to ensure adequate quality healthcare human resources for the district level. Allocate and ensure funding from regular expenditure to organize training or send staff for training and capacity building to improve professional skills and operational proficiency of equipment.

e) Organize quarterly meetings to evaluate the implementation results, report to the Central Steering Committee, the Ministry of Health for consolidation and reporting to the Prime Minister. People's Councils at all levels must strictly monitor throughout the implementation process of the Implementation Plan in accordance with their assigned functions.

Article 3. This Decision takes effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette.

Article 4. The Ministers, Heads of ministerial-level agencies, Heads of government agencies, and Chairpersons of provincial People's Committees and municipal People's Committees directly under the Central Government are responsible for enforcing this Decision./.