Circular No. 78 TC-HCSN supplements certain contents and funding levels for the HIV/AIDS prevention program.

CIRCULAR

OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE NUMBER 128/1999/TT-BTC DATED OCTOBER 26, 1999 GUIDING THE CONTENT AND LEVEL OF EXPENSES FOR THE NATIONAL PROGRAM TO PREVENT AND CONTROL HIV/AIDS

Pursuant to Decree No. 34/CP dated June 1, 1996 of the Government guiding the implementation of the Ordinance on Prevention and Control of Viral Infections Causing Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS).
Pursuant to Decision No. 531/TTg dated August 8, 1996 of the Prime Minister on managing national programs.
Pursuant to Decision No. 05/1998/QĐ-TTg dated January 14, 1998 of the Government on managing national target programs.
After reaching consensus with the National Committee for HIV/AIDS Prevention (Circular No. 780/UB dated October 11, 1999), the Ministry of Finance guides certain contents and levels of expenses for the National Program to Prevent and Control HIV/AIDS as follows:

1. The funds allocated for the National Program to Prevent and Control HIV/AIDS are formed from the following sources: State budget (including foreign aid), and mobilized contributions from the people and economic organizations as prescribed by the State. These funding sources are managed in accordance with the State Budget Law and its implementing regulations.

- Expenditure for purchasing equipment, medicines, chemicals, and biological products for professional work.

- Expenditure for information, communication, education activities, printing, production of communication materials, documents, and forms serving the program. Support for radio, television, press, and anti-AIDS campaigns at central and local levels.

- Expenses for information dissemination, communication, education, printing, publication of communication materials, documents, and forms serving the Program. Support for radio, television, press, and anti-AIDS campaigns at central and local levels.

- Expenses for peer education and harm reduction interventions (for groups of individuals infected with HIV/AIDS to help each other and share experiences in preventing transmission to others). Each province has a peer education team, receiving one quota, with each quota costing 80,000 dong/month/province.

- Counterpart funds for receiving loans and grants from projects approved by the Government of Vietnam (if applicable): Costs for receiving, distributing, transporting medicines, chemicals, equipment, rent for premises, salaries for project staff under contractual agreements.

- Capital matching for receiving loans and grants from projects approved by the Government of Vietnam (if applicable): Costs for receiving, distributing, transporting medicines, chemicals, equipment, rent, and salaries for project staff under contractual agreements.

- Expenditure for awards according to the decision of the Chairman of the National Steering Committee for AIDS Prevention and Control. The level of awards shall be applied in accordance with Circular No. 24/1999/BTC-TT dated March 4, 1999 and Circular No. 70/1999/BTC-TT dated June 10, 1999 guiding financial management for outstanding achievement awards in economic and social tasks and national defense.

- Awards according to the decision of the Chairman of the National Committee for HIV/AIDS Prevention. The level of awards is applied according to Circular No. 24/1999/BTC-TT dated March 4, 1999 and Circular No. 70/1999/BTC-TT dated June 10, 1999 guiding financial management for outstanding achievement awards in economic and social tasks and national defense.

- Fees for dedicated AIDS control officers in key communes and wards, health workers, and prison educators directly caring for, treating, and educating individuals infected with HIV/AIDS at Centers 05, 06, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools: (Each province receives one quota of 80,000 dong/month/province. For key communes and wards (with HIV/AIDS patients), Centers 05, 06, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools. If there are between 10 and 50 patients, it counts as one quota, if there are 50 or more patients, it counts as two quotas.

- Support for epidemic surveillance officers, outbreak investigation teams, and organizing interventions to prevent spread among the population, with the level of support being equivalent to the fees for health workers engaged in disease prevention, at 10,000 dong/day/officer.

- Expenses for medical personnel directly providing blood testing services for targeted monitoring, detection, and screening during blood transfusions, diagnosing HIV/AIDS (including organizational work and other costs, the number of samples monitored is determined by the Ministry of Health in coordination with the National Committee for HIV/AIDS Prevention and assigned to the relevant facilities) with the approved expenditure level as follows:

- 3,000 VND/sample for screening during HIV/AIDS diagnosis within the approved program plan.

- Expenditure for supporting medical personnel directly treating and caring for AIDS patients in state healthcare facilities, calculated based on actual treatment days, with an expenditure level of 5,000 VND/day/patient.

- Expenditure for subsidizing medication for HIV/AIDS patients who are poor and healthcare providers who have been infected while treating HIV/AIDS patients in state healthcare facilities, at 100,000 VND/patient/year.

- Support for medication for HIV/AIDS patients who are poor and healthcare professionals directly caring for HIV/AIDS patients who have been accidentally infected and are undergoing treatment at state healthcare facilities, at 100,000 dong/patient/year.

+ Expenditure for supporting personnel organizing social activities, learning exchanges, and information counseling for HIV/AIDS-infected individuals. Expenditure level: 50,000 VND/patient/year.

+ Providing preventive tools against HIV/AIDS infection for people living with HIV/AIDS such as condoms and syringes. Expenditure level: 20,000 VND/person/year.

+ Expenditure for health check-ups and provision of common medications for opportunistic infections every six months. Expenditure level: 30,000 VND/patient/visit.

+ Expenditure for visiting when an AIDS patient dies. Expenditure level: 50,000 VND/patient/deceased.

+ Expenditure for sanitation and hygiene work at healthcare facilities when an HIV/AIDS patient dies. Expenditure level: 100,000 VND/patient/deceased.

- Subsidizing food expenses for HIV/AIDS-infected individuals who are no longer able to work at Centers 5-6 of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs after they have exhausted their benefits from Programs 5 and 6 (six months). The subsidy amount is equal to 50% of the current food allowance for drug addicts and sex workers: Expenditure level: 42,000 VND/person/month for up to six months.

- Partial food support for HIV/AIDS-infected individuals unable to work at Centers 05-06 of the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs when they have exhausted their benefits from Programs 05, 06 (six months). The support level is equal to 50% of the current food allowance for drug addicts and sex workers: The expenditure level is 42,000 dong/person/month for up to six months.

- Expenses for educational activities for HIV/AIDS-infected individuals at Centers 05, 06, prisons, and educational institutions (supported with communication materials valued at 5,000 dong/patient/month).

- Management and operational expenses for the National AIDS Prevention Program at the central level include: Office supplies, office equipment, communication costs, conference costs, inspection work, planning development, within the allocated budget, at a rate of 3% of the total annual budget allocation for the HIV/AIDS Prevention Program.

- Annually, the Ministry of Finance coordinates with the National Committee for HIV/AIDS Prevention and related ministries and sectors to allocate specific amounts for these activities according to the above expenditure levels to ensure uniform implementation nationwide within the State budget approved by the National Assembly.

3/ Financial management work:

a/ Budget preparation and allocation work:

The preparation, disbursement, and management of program funds are carried out in accordance with Circular No. 06 TT/LBKH-TC dated April 29, 1997 of the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance guiding the implementation of Decision No. 531/TTg dated August 8, 1996 of the Prime Minister on managing national programs, Circular No. 103/1998/TT-BTC dated July 8, 1998 of the Ministry of Finance on the delegation, preparation, execution, and settlement of the State budget, and current program management regulations of the State.

Annually, based on the Prime Minister's directive on developing socio-economic plans; Circulars guiding and allocating budgetary checks for State budget expenditures issued by the Ministry of Finance, the National Committee for HIV/AIDS Prevention allocates budgetary checks to ministries, sectors, and localities for submission to the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Planning and Investment for review, balancing, consolidation, and presentation to the Standing Committee of the National Assembly and the Government for approval, and the Ministry of Finance will notify the expenditure tasks to ministries, sectors, and localities.

- Upon receipt of the program budget notification, ministries, sectors, and provincial-level People's Committees allocate and assign the budget to units directly using program funds, detailing the content and submitting it to the National Committee for HIV/AIDS Prevention - Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

- Units allocated program funds shall prepare detailed budgets according to the content and State budget item list and send them to the Ministry of Finance and the program supervisory agency.

b/ Issuance of AIDS prevention and control program funds:

- For centrally-executed funds: Based on the annual budget estimate assigned and the approval document for the budget according to the State Budget Classification, units directly using the program funds shall prepare quarterly expenditure budgets according to the State Budget Classification and submit them to the superior supervisory agency and the State Treasury where transactions take place. The superior supervisory agency shall consolidate and submit these to the Ministry of Finance to directly allocate quotas to central ministries and agencies implementing the program.

- For locally implemented funds: Based on the assigned annual budget, from 2000, the Ministry of Finance will allocate to localities in accordance with the current financial regulations of the Government.

- In special cases requiring centralized procurement of specialized materials and equipment for AIDS prevention work, this shall be carried out by the National AIDS Control Committee, which will keep records (quantity, value) of the usage situation according to the current asset and material management regulations of the State.

4/ Inspection and settlement of program funds:

Units utilizing program funds must maintain accounting books to record, account for, and settle accounts for the program's funding sources in accordance with the accounting system for administrative and public service units issued together with Decision No. 999/TC-QĐ-CĐKT dated November 2, 1996, by the Minister of Finance, and Circular No. 103/1998/TT-BTC dated July 18, 1998, by the Ministry of Finance, guiding the classification, preparation, implementation, and settlement of the State Budget.

- For the annual settlement reports of units under localities receiving funding, after having the audit and review report from the local Department of Finance and Prices, the permanent office of the AIDS control agency shall consolidate and submit to the National AIDS Control Committee to further consolidate and submit to the Ministry of Finance.

- Central ministries and sectors are responsible for consolidating and reporting the overall settlement of program funds implemented by central ministries and sectors.

- The National Committee for HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control shall cooperate with the Ministry of Finance to conduct regular and spot checks on the use of funds for the National Program for HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control in ministries, sectors, and localities.

This Circular takes effect fifteen days after its date of signature and replaces Circular No. 21-TC/HCSN dated April 9, 1996, and No. 78-TC/HCSN dated December 16, 1996. All previous provisions that differ from the contents stipulated in this Circular are hereby abolished.

During implementation, if any difficulties are found, please reflect them to the Ministry of Finance for consideration and resolution.