Circular No. 49/2011/TT-BYT Issuing and guiding the application of loss rates for traditional medicine ingredients in processing, storage, and weighing

CIRCULAR

ISSUING AND GUIDING THE APPLICATION OF LOSS RATES FOR HERBAL MEDICINES IN TRADITIONAL MEDICINE IN PRODUCTION, STORAGE, AND DISTRIBUTION

Pursuant to the Medicine Law No. 34/2005/QH11 dated June 14, 2005;

Pursuant to the Government Decree No. 188/2007/NĐ-CP dated December 27, 2007 on the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Health;

Pursuant to the Government Decree No. 62/2009/NĐ-CP dated July 27, 2009 on detailed regulations and guidance for implementation of certain provisions of the Health Insurance Law;

Pursuant to Circular No. 12/2010/TT-BYT dated April 29, 2010 issued by the Ministry of Health on the list of main traditional medicines used at healthcare facilities;

The Ministry of Health issues and guides the application of loss rates for traditional medicines in production, storage, and distribution as follows:

Article 1. Scope of application

This Circular applies to healthcare facilities with the function of providing traditional medicine services.

Article 2. Interpretation of Terms

1Herbal medicine is crude drug material processed and compounded according to the theory and methods of traditional medicine.

2. Processing is the process of changing the quality and quantity of raw crude drugs into processed herbal medicines according to the principles of traditional medicine, including two main stages: preliminary processing and compounding.

3Preliminary processing includes soaking, fermenting, washing, drying, and slicing.

4. Slicing is the process of dividing crude drugs to a reasonable size.

5. Complex processing is the complex processing stage according to the principles of traditional medicine, using fire, water, or a combination of water and fire, or other auxiliary materials depending on the requirements of each crude drug to meet specific requirements of each herbal medicine in treatment.

6. Loss rate of traditional herbal medicines during processing is the percentage lost after the medicine has been processed compared to the initial weight of the crude drug.

Article 3. Principles for determining the loss rate of traditional herbal medicines

1. The list of loss rates for traditional herbal medicines is established based on the parts used of the crude drugs to determine the loss rate based on the principle that herbal medicines with similar nature will have similar or nearly similar loss rates.

2. The loss rate of traditional herbal medicines is determined according to each stage of preliminary processing and compounding for each type of raw material input.

3. Crude drugs used for processing must meet quality standards according to the Vietnamese Pharmacopoeia or standard specifications for herbal medicines not included in the Vietnamese Pharmacopoeia.

Article 4. List of loss rates for traditional herbal medicines in processing

Attached to this Circular is the "List of loss rates for traditional herbal medicines in processing" to be used at healthcare facilities.

Article 5. Guidance on implementing loss rates for traditional herbal medicines in processing, storage, and distribution

1. The loss rate of traditional herbal medicines serves as the basis for healthcare facilities providing traditional medicine services to calculate hospital fees and health insurance payments.

2. The loss rate of traditional herbal medicines during storage and distribution is determined based on the part used: For parts used in leaf and flower form, the loss rate is 3%; for root, rhizome, fruit, seed, and bark forms, the loss rate is 2%; for other parts used, the loss rate is 3%.

3. In cases where healthcare facilities purchase unprocessed crude drugs, the loss rate is calculated based on the loss rate of each stage of preliminary processing and compounding. For example, for unprocessed Huang Qi, the loss rate is calculated as follows: If Huang Qi is used immediately after preliminary processing, the loss rate is calculated based on the preliminary processing stage at 19%; if Huang Qi is processed further by steaming, the loss rate is 20%.

4. In cases where healthcare facilities purchase crude drugs that have already undergone preliminary processing for further processing, the loss rate is calculated based on the compounding stage loss rate minus the preliminary processing stage loss rate. For example, for Bai Shao that has already undergone preliminary processing (sliced), only the compounding stage loss rate (18%) minus the preliminary processing stage loss rate (15%) is considered, which is 3%; in cases where healthcare facilities purchase crude drugs that have already undergone preliminary processing for immediate use, only the loss rate due to storage and distribution is considered.

5. In cases where healthcare facilities purchase ready-made processed crude drugs from drug processing facilities according to the regulations of the Ministry of Health, only the loss rate due to storage and distribution is considered.

6. For traditional herbal medicines listed in Decision No. 3759/QĐ-BYT dated October 8, 2010 on the issuance of processing methods ensuring quality for 85 traditional Chinese medicines, the loss rate shall be applied according to the list attached to this Circular.

Article 6. Responsibilities of Units

1. Medical establishments using traditional medicine ingredients listed in the attached Circular shall determine the loss rate as prescribed in Article 5.

2. For traditional medicine ingredients not included in the attached Circular:

a) The Ministry of Health shall specify the loss rate for central traditional medicine hospitals.

b) Provincial Departments of Health and municipal departments under the central government shall specify the loss rate for traditional medicine ingredients for subordinate units.

c) Annually, traditional medicine hospitals shall report the loss rate for traditional medicine ingredients outside the list to the Ministry of Health (Department of Traditional Medicine) for consideration to include them in the list.

3. During the procurement of medicinal materials for medical establishments, the purchase invoice must clearly indicate the state of the medicinal materials in raw form, preprocessed, or processed according to specified methods to serve as a basis for calculation and application of the appropriate loss rate list.

Article 7. Effective Date

This Circular takes effect from February 1, 2012.

In the course of implementation, if there are difficulties or obstacles, units are requested to reflect them to the Ministry of Health for consideration and resolution./.