Circular No. 84/2000/TT-BTC guides the management and use of preventive healthcare fees and charges.

CIRCULAR

Guidelines for the management and use of preventive healthcare fees and charges

Pursuant to Decree No. 87/CP dated December 19, 1996 and Decree No. 51/1998/NĐ-CP dated July 18, 1998 of the Government detailing the delegation of authority, management, budget preparation, implementation, and settlement of state budget;

Pursuant to Decree No. 04/1999/NĐ-CP dated January 30, 1999 of the Government on fees and charges under the state budget;

Pursuant to Decision No. 21/2000/QĐ-BTC dated February 21, 2000 of the Minister of Finance regarding the issuance of the schedule of preventive healthcare fees and charges;

After reaching consensus with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance provides guidelines for the management and use of preventive healthcare fees and charges as follows:

I. GENERAL PROVISIONS:

1. Preventive healthcare fees and charges are a source of revenue for the state budget aimed at offsetting part of the costs associated with state management activities, specialized technical management activities, and the organization of preventive healthcare fee and charge collection.

2. Revenue from preventive healthcare fees and charges must be fully reflected in the state budget. Each year, units responsible for collecting preventive healthcare fees and charges must prepare a budget for income and expenditure, which must be approved by the superior supervisory body.

3. The objects, rates, and organizations collecting preventive healthcare fees and charges shall be implemented according to Decree No. 04/1999/NĐ-CP dated January 30, 1999 of the Government on fees and charges under the state budget; Circular No. 54/1999/TT-BTC dated May 10, 1999 guiding the implementation of the Decree; Decision No. 21/2000/QĐ-BTC dated February 21, 2000 of the Minister of Finance regarding the issuance of the schedule of preventive healthcare fees and charges.

4. Units organizing the collection of preventive healthcare fees and charges may retain 90% of the total amount of fees and 40% of the total amount of charges actually collected for use in expenditures prescribed in this Circular. The remaining amount must be remitted to the state budget according to chapters, categories, sections, items, and sub-items of the current state budget classification.

II. SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

1. Content of expenditure: The retained revenue from preventive healthcare fees and charges shall be used by the unit for the following purposes:

1.1. Expenditure on specialized technical activities of preventive healthcare work and fee collection:

Purchase of medicines, chemicals, vaccines, diagnostic reagents; purchase of animals, environments, specimens for service of vaccine, reagent, chemical testing and evaluation; environmental factor samples for labor hygiene testing, water testing, border health quarantine;

Purchase of uniforms and insignia for border health quarantine officers;

Purchase of equipment and technical tools directly serving: research, investigation, testing, disinfection, diagnosis, survey, environmental testing, occupational disease testing, water quality inspection, school sanitation inspection, public environment sanitation inspection, vaccine, reagent, chemical storage and transportation;

Maintenance and repair of equipment and tools;

Expenditure on disease prevention activities: environmental sanitation monitoring, school sanitation, drinking water sanitation, labor hygiene, worker health, chemical testing, border health quarantine (investigation, inspection, supervision);

1.2. Regular expenditure to ensure the operation of preventive healthcare fee and charge collection activities:

Wages and allowances for contractual workers (if any);

Contributions to social insurance, health insurance, and trade union funds for contractual workers under the responsibility of the employer according to established regulations;

Remuneration for civil servants and employees undertaking additional fee and charge collection tasks outside their assigned duties based on the extent of their participation in such work (including overtime allowances);

Printing (purchase) of forms, files, books, certificates, office supplies, communication materials;

Fees for reviewing applications, activities of the Review Board; consultations; occupational disease diagnosis.

1.3. Expenditure on education and communication services for preventive healthcare work.

1.4. Setting up a reward fund for civil servants, employees, and contractual workers implementing preventive healthcare fee and charge collection. The maximum annual reward fund per person shall not exceed three months' salary.

1.5. Expenditure on training for preventive healthcare staff;

1.6. Other expenditures to serve preventive healthcare work.

1.7. Specific expenditure levels are detailed in the attached annex.

2. Preparation and Implementation of Budgets for Preventive Healthcare Fees and Charges:

2.1. Each year, preventive healthcare facilities responsible for collecting fees and charges must prepare a budget for income and expenditure according to the current state budget classification and submit it to the supervisory body for approval. The consolidated budget is then submitted to the financial department at the same level and the State Treasury where the transaction account is opened.

2.2. Based on the approved budget, the head of the unit issues payment orders, and the State Treasury processes and controls expenditures according to current regulations.

2.3. Units organizing the collection of preventive healthcare fees and charges must open a fee and charge collection account at the State Treasury where transactions take place. Within 7 to 10 days, these units must deposit the collected amounts into their temporary holding accounts at the State Treasury. For cases involving foreign currency collections, the State Treasury will convert the foreign currency into Vietnamese dong based on the interbank foreign exchange rate published by the State Bank of Vietnam at the time of deposit.

2.4. Any expenditures outside the approved budget must be accounted for, recovered, and remitted to the state budget. The person issuing incorrect payment orders must reimburse the public treasury and be subject to legal penalties.

2.5. All retained revenue from preventive healthcare fees and charges must be recorded in the state budget through the State Treasury system. Procedures and steps for recording income and expenditures are as follows:

Recording of income and expenditures must be conducted quarterly. By the 15th day of the first month of each quarter, units must consolidate the actual income and expenditure figures from the previous quarter's preventive healthcare fee and charge revenue (detailed according to the state budget classification) and submit them to the State Treasury where the transaction account is held for confirmation and recording.

After receiving confirmation from the State Treasury, subordinate units under ministries and central agencies managing them shall send it to their respective ministries or central agencies for consolidation and submission to the Ministry of Finance to process the recording of revenue and expenditure from the central budget; local units shall send it to their supervising agencies for consolidation and submission to the local Department of Finance and Prices to process the recording of revenue and expenditure from the local budget.

3. Settlement of revenue and expenses, health prevention fees:

3.1. Units and organizations entrusted with the task of collecting health prevention fees must maintain complete accounting books, record, account for, and settle the collection of health prevention fees according to Decision No. 999/TC/QD/CĐKT dated November 2, 1996 of the Minister of Finance on the issuance of the system of administrative and public service accounting regulations and Decision No. 144/BYT/QD dated January 31, 1997 of the Minister of Health on the issuance of the system of public health service accounting regulations.

3.2. Units and organizations collecting health prevention fees must prepare reports on the settlement of the collection and use of health prevention fees and submit them to their supervising agencies for review and consolidation into comprehensive settlement reports sent to the financial authorities at the same level for examination and approval according to current regulations.

3.3. In cases where the collected health prevention fees are retained by the unit for use, if they have not been fully utilized by the end of the year, the remaining amount must be paid into the state budget. In special cases where the balance is carried over to the next year, this must be decided by the Minister of Finance (for health prevention fees collected from the central budget) and the Chairman of the People's Committee (for health prevention fees collected from the local budget).

3.4. Supervisory agencies are responsible for coordinating with financial authorities at the same level to organize regular (or spot) inspections of units and organizations collecting health prevention fees to ensure compliance with regulations on revenue and expenditure.

III. IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS:

The provisions of this Circular shall take effect from March 7, 2000. Any other regulations concerning the use of health prevention fees that conflict with this Circular are hereby abolished.

In the course of implementation, if there are any difficulties, please promptly report them to the Ministry of Finance for study and resolution./.

ANNEX

Levels of expenditure for certain contents of preventive healthcare activities and fee collection

(Issued pursuant to Circular No. 84/TT-BTC dated August 16, 2000 of the Ministry of Finance guiding the management and use of health prevention fees)