The new regulation that makes insurance compulsory insurance for students dictates that they will only pay 70 percent of premiums, with the government subsidizing the remainder.

With the aim of encouraging students to buy insurance, the new law took effect last January and has received public backing. Students only pay the equivalent of 3 percent of the country’s minimum salary for employees of State-owned companies (VND 980,000).

Accordingly, over 1.2 million students paid 174 billion for insurance during the 2009-2010 academic year, said Do Quang Khanh, deputy head of the insurance company.

According to the insurance company, 90 percent of the fund would go towards examination and treatment, 10 percent for primary healthcare in schools.

The company also revealed that primary, senior and junior high school students buy insurance more than university students do.

In 2009, many pupils were reimbursed for hospital expenditures after being discharged from medical clinics; some even received nearly VND100 million in rebates. Parents are very happy as the insurance fund has shared the financial burden when their children got sick. For instance, a student of the Primary Nguyen Van Troi in Ho Chi Minh City’s district 2 got a VND80 million rebate from the insurance company, after she received treatment for an incurable ailment for two months at the district hospital.

According to the new regulation, the insurance company will pay 100 percent of students’ hospital fees, if they are lower than 15 percent of the national minimum salary, or if students received treatment at their district medical clinics. If students received treatment at public big city hospitals or at facilities they did not registered with beforehand, the insurance company will pay 70 percent, 50 percent and 30 percent for third, second and first class hospitals respectively.

Schools have been assigned the duty of collecting insurance premiums and propagandizing students and parents about the benefits insurance participants receive, said Mr. Khanh.

Students will pay the insurance premiums of VND282,000 for the academic year 2010-2011 and the government will provide VND78, 000. Students from low-income families in other provinces will pay VND131,000 if they purchase insurance in the city.

By Khanh Binh - Translated by Uyen Phuong
From SGGP Online