Ministry of Health information on new issuance and adjustment of medical examination and treatment operation licenses

The Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management said it had received official dispatches from the Department of Health of Yen Bai province (now Lao Cai province) and the Department of Health of Lai Chau province requesting guidance and direction on a number of issues related to the issuance and adjustment of medical examination and treatment licenses during the implementation of a two-level local government and provincial merger.

Regarding this issue, the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management has issued Official Dispatch No. 1000/KCB-NV to the Lao Cai Provincial Department of Health to guide on the issuance and adjustment of medical examination and treatment operation licenses.

The Department of Medical Examination and Treatment continues to clarify and guide the Department of Health of Lao Cai province, the Department of Health of Lai Chau province and the Departments of Health of provinces and centrally run cities, hospitals under the Ministry, and health of ministries and branches as follows:

According to Clause 2, Article 50 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023, the content of the operating license includes basic information: Name of medical examination and treatment facility; Form of organization; Address of operation; Scope of professional activities and Daily working hours.

Accordingly, the operating license has no expiration date. The issuance, reissuance, and adjustment of operating licenses are regulated in the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 and Decree No. 96/2023/ND-CP dated December 30, 2023 of the Government detailing a number of articles of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment.

According to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 52 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 on the issuance of new operating licenses, it is applied to the following cases: Medical examination and treatment facilities that have been granted an operating license but have changed their organizational form or location; Medical examination and treatment facilities that have been granted an operating license but have split, merged, or consolidated.

According to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 54 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023 on cases of adjusting operating licenses, including the following cases: Changing the scope of professional activities; Changing the scale of activities; Changing working hours; Medical examination and treatment facilities do not change location but change name and address."

Based on the above legal provisions, after implementing the two-level local government and merging, in case the licensed medical examination and treatment facilities change their working hours, or change the name or address of the medical examination and treatment facility but do not change the location, scale of operation, scope of professional activities or add or reduce the technical list of the medical examination and treatment facility, the application and procedures for requesting an adjustment to the operating license shall be carried out, specifically as follows:

Documents and procedures for adjusting the operating license in case of changing working hours or changing the name and address of the medical examination and treatment facility but not changing the location as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 64 and Article 65 of Decree No. 96/2023/ND-CP.

Dossier and procedures for adjusting operating licenses in case of changing the scale of operations, scope of professional operations or adding or reducing the technical list as prescribed in Clause 2, Article 64 and Article 66 of Decree No. 96/2023/ND-CP.

Resolution No. 190/2025/QH15 of the National Assembly stipulates on handling a number of issues related to the reorganization of the state apparatus, Clause 2, Article 10 stipulates: "Organizations and individuals shall not be required to carry out procedures to issue and change documents that have been issued by competent agencies and positions before implementing the reorganization of the state apparatus when these documents have not expired, except in cases where the law provides otherwise."

Accordingly, the operating license of medical examination and treatment facilities has been stipulated in the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment and Decree No. 96/2023/ND-CP.

Legal regulations on health insurance examination and treatment

To ensure continuity in the implementation of medical examination and treatment and payment of medical examination and treatment costs under health insurance during the transitional period, points a and b, clause 8, Article 69 (Transitional provisions) of Decree No. 188/2025/ND-CP dated July 1, 2025 of the Government detailing and guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Health Insurance stipulates:

Medical examination and treatment facilities are allowed to continue using the prices of health insurance examination and treatment services that have been prescribed and approved by competent authorities, and to pay for health insurance examination and treatment costs before the date the facilities are rearranged, reorganized, merged, or renamed to pay for health insurance examination and treatment costs until competent authorities prescribe and approve prices for new facilities;

In case a medical examination and treatment facility must issue a new, reissued or adjusted operating license, during the time of carrying out procedures for issuing a new, reissued or adjusted operating license according to regulations, the operating licenses that have been issued to medical examination and treatment facilities before the date of arrangement, reorganization, merger or name change shall continue to be used for the old and new facilities to perform medical examination and treatment and maintain the validity of the signed health insurance medical examination and treatment contract until signing a health insurance medical examination and treatment contract for the new facility according to the new operating license. The medical examination and treatment facility shall be responsible for ensuring the quality of medical examination and treatment services;

Clause 8, Article 69 of Decree No. 188/2025/ND-CP takes effect from July 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025."

Accordingly, medical examination and treatment facilities that are required to issue new, reissue or adjust operating licenses may, during the time of carrying out procedures for issuing new, reissue or adjusting operating licenses, use operating licenses that were issued before the date of arrangement, reorganization, merger, name change and the expiration date is until December 31, 2025.

THIEN LAM

Source: https://nhandan.vn/bo-y-te-thong-tin-ve-cap-moi-dieu-chinh-giay-phep-hoat-dong-kham-chua-benh-post902259.html