Fighting price chaos in veterinary services: Transparent regulations needed

In recent years, as the demand for pets (dogs, cats...) has increased, pet care and treatment services have also flourished. However, veterinary service fees at private clinics and hospitals have shown a lack of transparency and have not been controlled by the authorities. This has caused people to face a situation of price chaos, making it difficult to know what is reasonable and what is an inflated price.

Vaccination against rabies for dogs in Soc Son district. Photo: Anh Duong

Each place has a price list.

In the role of a dog owner, a reporter from Hanoi Moi Newspaper surveyed several veterinary clinics in Hanoi and noted that each place had different prices. Specifically, for the same X-ray service for dogs with broken legs, a clinic in Ngoc Lam Ward (Long Bien District) quoted a price of 290,000 VND per x-ray, while a veterinary hospital on Minh Khai Street (Hai Ba Trung District) charged 350,000 VND and another facility on Le Duan Street (Dong Da District) listed a price of 500,000 VND. In addition, the cost of treatment after testing and diagnosis is also very different. For example, the price of a cast for a dog under 5kg ranges from 950,000 VND to more than 1.2 million VND, if the weight is larger, the fee is higher. If it is necessary to intervene with a splint and screw, the cost can increase from 2 million to 5 million VND.

Not only bone and joint treatment but also other services have significant price differences. Abdominal ultrasound for dogs is 150,000 VND in some places, but there are facilities that quote up to 500,000 VND. Sterilization costs fluctuate widely from 500,000 VND to 2 million VND, depending on the facility, gender and weight of the pet. Caesarean section surgery for dogs and cats is also not uniform, from 2.5 million to 3.5 million VND...

A common point that is easily seen is that at many private veterinary clinics and hospitals, service prices are only listed as “reference” prices, and the actual fee will be decided after the pet undergoes a series of tests and preliminary diagnosis. The lack of a specific, transparent price list makes many people “laugh and cry” when they have to pay more for treatment for their pets than for treatment for their sick family members.

Ms. Nguyen Thu Huyen in Ha Dong district said: “I had to spend more than 10 million VND for my dog ​​to be hospitalized for 20 days to treat hemorrhoids. The inpatient treatment fee alone was 500,000 VND/day, not including the cost of medicine and procedures.” Similarly, Ms. Nguyen Thi Khanh in Nam Tu Liem district said: “My family just spent more than 6 million VND to save an old dog with endometritis. Of which, the X-ray cost 370,000 VND, the test cost 600,000 VND, 3 injections of red blood cell inhibitors (250,000 VND/dose), the surgery cost 2.5 million VND and the hospitalization fee was 420,000 VND/day for 5 consecutive days. While a few weeks ago, when my father was hospitalized for surgery, the hospital fee was only about 5 million VND.”

Need specific legal corridor

The current "chaos" in veterinary service prices largely stems from the lack of a specific legal framework. Although the 2015 Veterinary Law and guiding documents such as Decree No. 35/2016/ND-CP of the Government detailing a number of articles of the Veterinary Law; Circular No. 07/2016/TT-BNNPTNT of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment ) regulating the prevention and control of terrestrial diseases have been issued, the main content still focuses on the conditions for practice, quarantine and prevention and control of animal diseases. Regulations on price frames and ceiling prices for medical examination and treatment services for livestock are almost left open.

There are currently about 140 licensed private veterinary clinics in Hanoi, but it is difficult to deal with the chaotic situation regarding prices due to the lack of clear legal regulations. According to the Head of the Department of Animal Husbandry, Fisheries and Veterinary Medicine (Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Environment) Nguyen Dinh Dang, private veterinary clinics are allowed to operate when they meet the requirements on personnel, facilities and are licensed according to regulations. Currently, each place has different levels of investment in facilities, infrastructure, equipment and human resources, so the prices are not uniform. Moreover, there are currently only a few regulations on vaccination, hygiene, testing prices... for veterinary services applied in public facilities; as for organizations and individuals providing treatment services for pets, there is no document requiring them to set a standard price or to list specific prices.

“We are only responsible for assessing the hygiene conditions of the facilities and the staff conditions at private clinics and hospitals for pets, but not checking the service prices. When using examination and treatment services for pets, people should research carefully, ask and agree on the price in advance. We will have recommendations to regulate service prices as well as require businesses to list specific prices so that people can easily refer to, compare and make appropriate choices,” Mr. Nguyen Dinh Dang informed.

The above situation shows that it is time to have a clear legal mechanism to regulate prices and service quality in the veterinary field, especially for specialized treatment services. A price ceiling and reference price for each type of service, along with mandatory regulations on public listing and transparency of costs, is necessary to ensure the rights of consumers.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/chong-loan-gia-dich-vu-thu-y-can-co-quy-dinh-minh-bach-704242.html