Key Development
On the afternoon of September 8, 2026, Prime Minister Le Minh Hung chaired a high-level government working session with the Ministry of Health and relevant central ministries to review and finalize the draft omnibus Law Amending and Supplementing Several Laws in the Healthcare Sector, scheduled for formal submission to the National Assembly at its 2nd Session in October 2026.
The executive review addressed statutory gaps, regulatory bottlenecks, and pricing mechanisms governing medical devices, pharmaceutical distribution, and clinical examination:
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Scope of legislative integration: Following the specialized legislative cabinet session on August 18, 2026—which approved revisions across five healthcare statutes (Children, Persons with Disabilities, Medical Examination and Treatment, Pharmacy, and Alcohol Harm Prevention)—the Prime Minister approved the comprehensive integration of statutory medical device management provisions into this omnibus bill. Concurrently, the draft amended Law on Food Safety is being finalized for legislative review.
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Vietnam healthcare market baseline:
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The domestic medical device market reached approximately $2 billion USD in 2025 and continues to expand rapidly.
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The pharmaceutical sector represents an estimated valuation of $7 to $8 billion USD, projected to double to $15 to $16 billion USD over the next five years.
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Per capita pharmaceutical expenditure is estimated at $70 to $78 USD annually, supported by rising disposable household income.
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Structural vulnerabilities identified:
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Medical devices: Domestic manufacturing remains constrained, with the healthcare sector relying heavily on international imports; pricing structures are burdened by multiple commercial markups; gaps persist in life-cycle asset management and maintenance standards; risk-averse behavior continues to slow hospital procurement committees.
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Pharmaceuticals: Sustained dependence on imported active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and originator biologics; multi-layered wholesale brokerage structures; regulatory delays in drug registration renewals; and procurement criteria disproportionately favoring lowest-price bidding over therapeutic cost-efficacy.
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Executive policy directives from the Prime Minister:
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End-to-end pricing controls: Enforce statutory price tracking from primary overseas manufacturers, customs ports of entry, and distributors to hospital tenders and retail patients; implement mandatory price listings and establish margin thresholds.
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Disintermediation of supply channels: Expand centralized national procurement tenders and direct price negotiations with multinational manufacturers; remove speculative brokerage layers; facilitate direct supply contracts between modern pharmacy retail chains and pharmaceutical manufacturers.
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Unified National Healthcare Pricing Database: Establish an integrated, real-time national pricing database for pharmaceuticals and medical equipment operating under standardized data protocols and interlinked with customs clearance, health insurance, and hospital electronic medical records.
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Food safety structural overhaul: Transition regulatory enforcement from pre-market inspection to data-driven post-market surveillance; deploy end-to-end digital traceability; and consolidate regional food safety oversight under a single national authority.
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Legislative submission deadline: The Ministry of Health is mandated to finalize the comprehensive draft dossier for government submission prior to September 15, 2026, ensuring formal consideration during the October 2026 parliamentary session.
Why It Matters
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Transitioning from ad-hoc administrative relief to statutory supply chain regulation: Rather than relying on short-term administrative circulars to address hospital shortages, the Government is embedding supply chain controls into national law. Establishing transparent, interlinked data from customs entry to point-of-care dispensing aims to curb intermediary price speculation.
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Empowering modern retail pharmacy channels and direct sourcing: Supporting direct supply relationships between large-scale commercial retail pharmacy networks and pharmaceutical manufacturers bypasses multi-tiered wholesale layers, lowering out-of-pocket costs for self-pay consumers.
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Standardizing medical device governance to international norms: Structuring clear legal standards for imported medical technologies—spanning customs declaration, after-sales service, spare parts pricing, and routine metrological calibration—provides hospital leadership with purchasing transparency and removes procurement paralysis across public tertiary institutions.
Healthcare Insight Analysis
From the perspective of Healthcare Insight, the Prime Minister’s directives on September 8, 2026, illustrate Data-Driven Price Transparency and Upstream Supply Chain Disintermediation.
The reform platform establishes three core healthcare economics priorities:
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Customs-interlinked digital price verification: Historical pricing discrepancies between declared import (CIF) values and winning public hospital tender prices stemmed from data fragmentation. Interlinking General Department of Vietnam Customs data with the national health price portal creates verifiable gross margin benchmarks, deterring cross-border transfer pricing and artificial markups.
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Re-evaluating lowest-bid tender criteria: Acknowledging the clinical drawbacks of lowest-price tender selection clears the way for value-based procurement. Incorporating therapeutic outcomes, product stability, and Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) into the revised legislation ensures public hospitals procure durable equipment and reliable pharmaceuticals.
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Consolidating fragmented food safety governance: Fragmented oversight across the Ministries of Health, Agriculture, and Industry has historically produced enforcement gaps. Establishing a single specialized food safety authority combined with digital supply chain traceability strengthens surveillance across institutional catering, school meals, and informal food retail.
Market Implications
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Restructuring of domestic pharmaceutical distribution channels: Pure commercial intermediaries lacking specialized Good Storage Practice (GSP) logistics infrastructure face consolidation pressure. Conversely, professional third-party logistics providers and organized pharmacy chains (such as Long Chau, Pharmacity, and An Khang) will strengthen market positioning through direct multinational contracts.
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Inflows of medical device and biopharmaceutical joint ventures: Statutory incentives proposed under planned Investment Law revisions will encourage global medical technology leaders (GE HealthCare, Siemens Healthineers, Philips) and biopharmaceutical developers to pursue localized manufacturing partnerships in Vietnam.
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Procurement normalization across public tertiary hospitals: Standardized regulatory guidance regarding device life-cycle management and transparent national price indices will enable public hospital bidding committees to accelerate capital expenditures for advanced clinical equipment.
Strategic Policy & Market Matrix: Vietnam Healthcare Reform Directives (September 8, 2026)
| Parameter | Market Baseline & Operational Challenges | Executive Directives & Reform Mechanisms |
| Medical device market scale | Valued at ~$2B USD in 2025; heavily import-reliant | Full life-cycle oversight, digitized supply chain, customs tracking |
| Pharmaceutical market scale | Valued at $7-8B USD; projected to double to $15-16B USD | Expand national central tenders, direct manufacturer negotiations |
| Per capita drug consumption | Estimated at $70-78 USD annually; expanding steadily | Eliminate intermediary brokerage layers to reduce retail prices |
| Price governance structure | Fragmented margins between import entry and retail | Deploy Unified National Drug and Medical Device Pricing Database |
| Tender selection methodology | Constrained by excessive focus on lowest-cost bids | Transition toward balanced quality, efficacy, and lifecycle value |
| Food safety framework | Divided across ministries; cumbersome pre-clearance | Establish single unified authority; implement digital post-market audit |
| Parliamentary timeline | MOH finalizes submission to Cabinet by Sept 15, 2026 | Enactment review at National Assembly 2nd Session (October 2026) |