Draft Law on Disease Prevention Clearly defines the limits of adjustment to avoid duplication and overlap.

According to experts, the development of the Law on Disease Prevention is a big step forward in protecting public health. If implemented well, it will reduce the burden of disease and save costs. However, to ensure feasibility and demonstrate the mindset of "taking disease prevention as the center and treatment as support", it is necessary to clearly define the limits of regulation to avoid duplication and overlap, causing difficulties in implementation.

Opportunities to strengthen disease prevention and control

Deputy Director of the Department of Disease Prevention, Ministry of Health Pham Duc Manh said that the Ministry of Health has drafted the Law on Disease Prevention based on inheriting, updating and expanding the 2007 Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases to be suitable, meet practical requirements and overcome difficulties and obstacles in disease prevention and control, especially the Covid-19 pandemic.

Deputy Director of the Department of Disease Prevention, Ministry of Health Pham Duc Manh speaks. Photo: Tinh Ha

Including new additional contents compared to current regulations, such as: regulations on principles of nutrition in disease prevention and nutrition regulations for certain subjects; regulations on risk factors, early detection and measures to prevent mental health disorders; regulations on rights and responsibilities of agencies, organizations and individuals in preventing and combating mental health disorders.

Regarding the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, regulations on measures to prevent and control non-communicable diseases; regulations on prevention and control of risk factors causing non-communicable diseases; regulations on early detection, prevention of non-communicable diseases and management and treatment of non-communicable diseases in the community. Regulations on research, application of science , technology, innovation and digital transformation in disease prevention...

At the Conference on Collecting Opinions on the Draft Law on Disease Prevention organized by the Committee on Culture and Society in coordination with the United Nations Population Fund, delegates basically agreed with the content of the draft Law on Disease Prevention. They said that this is an important opportunity to strengthen the prevention and control of infectious diseases and non-communicable diseases; meeting the aspirations of the people and the health sector.

The draft has many new points, especially expanding the scope of regulation to non-communicable diseases, mental health, nutrition and other risk factors. This is a very necessary content, suitable for local practice where the rate of non-communicable diseases is increasing, and issues of nutrition, mental health and environmental factors are also posing many challenges.

The draft Law has also drawn on practical experience in preventing and combating the Covid-19 pandemic, reflecting the urgent requirements of disease prevention in the new context. In particular, new regulations on disease classification and decentralization according to the level of control and comprehensive support policies for this work.

Still wondering about the scope of regulation?

According to Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Phuong - representative of the World Health Organization in Vietnam, the amendment of the Law on Disease Prevention is a great opportunity to promote the institutional foundation of the Vietnamese health system towards the goal of universal health coverage and health for all people. The draft law has highlighted the spirit and principles of disease prevention first and foremost, and fairness in disease prevention. The provisions related to disease surveillance, early warning, disease management, and emergency situations are in line with the International Health Regulations.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Phuong - representative of the World Health Organization in Vietnam speaking. Photo: Tinh Ha

However, Ms. Phuong also said that the Law's coverage is too broad, which may affect the depth of its provisions. From international experience, Ms. Phuong also pointed out that there is no common model for countries related to the field of disease prevention or public health. However, there are still universal principles, such as comprehensiveness, continuity, and consistency in the legal system with the assignment of specific responsibilities to each agency and entity in implementing the Law.

Agreeing with this view, Director of the Center for Disease Control of Can Tho City Huynh Minh Truc said that the draft law has a fairly wide scope of regulation, including nutrition, environment, injury, mental health, and can overlap with many other laws such as the Law on Food Safety, Law on Environmental Protection, Law on Medical Examination and Treatment, Law on Mental Health, etc. Therefore, it is necessary to clearly define the limits of regulation to avoid duplication, causing difficulties in implementation.

Director of Can Tho City Center for Disease Control Huynh Minh Truc speaks. Photo: Tinh Ha

According to Nguyen Thi Mai Thoa, a full-time member of the National Assembly working at the Committee for Culture and Society, it is necessary to continue to carefully consider the scope of the draft law. Because with the name of the Law on Disease Prevention, it is clear that the content of the Law must be comprehensive, fully reflecting the factors related to disease prevention and health care for the people. However, the draft currently only stops within the framework of disease prevention in the medical field, that is, the scope of specialized management, so it is not really suitable for such a broad and general name.

National Assembly member working full-time at the Committee for Culture and Social Affairs Nguyen Thi Mai Thoa speaks. Photo: Tinh Ha

If the Law on Disease Prevention is built on the basis of inheriting and expanding the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases, it is necessary to add content on non-communicable diseases, nutritional diseases and other risk factors that directly affect public health. Otherwise, it will lead to a situation where the Law only covers a part, and the name and content are not really consistent with each other.

Delegates also suggested studying and supplementing inter-sectoral regulations related to the coordination responsibilities of many agencies and organizations. At the same time, it is necessary to clarify how the new implementation method will be when the Law is promulgated and how the apparatus will be organized. Only then will the Law on Disease Prevention, when promulgated, be truly feasible, synchronous, and meet practical requirements and the wishes of voters.

Emphasizing that the development of the Law on Disease Prevention is a big step forward in protecting public health, and if implemented well, it will reduce the burden of disease and save costs, but Dr. Phan Thanh Tung - Dong Thap Province Center for Disease Control, also suggested that, to ensure feasibility, it is necessary to add an independent and transparent monitoring mechanism; clarify responsibilities at each level, and avoid overlap. At the same time, there should be a mechanism for training health management for grassroots staff, and piloting data connection in a number of provinces before expanding.

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/du-an-luat-phong-benh-quy-dinh-ro-gioi-han-dieu-chinh-tranh-trung-lap-chong-cheo-10387142.html