No increases in medical service fees: Deputy PM

Hanoi (VNA) - There will be no increases in prices of medical examination and treatment, Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai affirmed while chairing a meeting with leading officials of several ministries and sectors on price management on June 13.

The official, who is also head of the steering committee for price management, stated that the Government is determined to keep the inflation below 4 percent in 2022.

The target is reachable if the montly CPI growth rate is kept at 0.7 percent in the remaining months of this year. However, the inflation risk at the end of the year may be big, affecting the growth momentum of 2022, Khai said, stressing the need for flexible price management.

To proactively respond to challenges in price management in the rest of 2022, ministries, sectors and localities need to step up the implementation of measures set forth by the Government and the Prime Minister, and the head of the steering committee for price management.

The State Bank of Vietnam was asked to coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to continue implementing the monetary policy proactively and flexibly in close coordination with the fiscal policy and other macroeconomic ones in order to control inflation, and continue to curb core inflation in 2022 to create a basis for general inflation control.

The Deputy PM also emphasised the importance of being cautious in increasing tuition fees, and carefully studying the law on prices to manage prices of textbooks in accordance with the actual situation.

Deputy Minister of Finance Vu Thi Mai said that in the context of increases in world prices of fuels and strategic materials, the Government, the Prime Minister and the head of the steering committee have issued documents directing the implementation of solutions and measures to stabilise prices and minimise the negative impacts of price increases on socio-economic development, production and business activities and people’s lives.

To date, the prices are still basically under control. The May CPI increased by 0.38 percent month-on-month and 2.86 percent year-on-year. The index in the first five months of this year rose by 2.25 percent year-on-year. Basic inflation in the period was up by 1.1 percent compared to the same period last year./.