Vietnam has been lauded for enabling 87.7 percent of its population to be covered by health insurance. Nonetheless, work still needs to be done in ensuring that the health and well-being of all individuals are continuously cared for. The battle against hepatitis and HIV, as well as battling the prevalence of cervical cancer are key conditions that remains to be addressed for Viet Nam.
On the Hepatitis front, about 8.8 million persons still live with hepatitis B (HBV) and C virus (HCV) infection, with 40,000 deaths reported annually; 80%–90% of those infected remain undiagnosed; and 95% of treatment-eligible people remain untreated due to a lack of awareness. For HIV, with about 12,000 new cases diagnosed and 2,000 deaths each year, is still a burden on Viet Nam. Finally, as the eight-leading type of cancer overall among Vietnamese women with an incidence rate of 5.7, the total loss of earnings due to the mortality from cervical cancer amounts to approximately US 900 million dollars per annum. These diseases not only result in a high mortality rate for individuals, but also poses a significant economic loss for Viet Nam if left unaddressed.
As Vietnam gears towards strengthening its healthcare system under the leadership of the new health minister, enhancing diagnostics capability will be a key strategy that enables the Government of Viet Nam to achieve Resolution No. 20 – NQ/TW – improve capacity for screening, [and] early detection and control of diseases.
In this panel, the various stakeholders will discuss the following:
Deputy Minister at Ministry of Health
Country Representative at UNFPA
Program Leader for Human Development for Vietnam at World Bank
GM Roche Vietnam at Roche Diagnostics
Country Manager Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar at Abbott
Professor at Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy
Vice Director of HCMC Service of Health
President at Vietnam Society for Infectious Diseases
Global Program Director, Global Program Director of PATH Vietnam
Executive Director of EU-ASEAN Business Council