VOA慢速英语2019--越南公立医院探索私人融资

Vietnam’s Government Hospitals Explore Private Financing¹

Vietnam is officially a socialist² republic, but the country is starting to make parts of its health care system private.

The move raises questions about whether the government can guarantee care for all as a basic right, and about how much it will spend on health care.

The Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine is a medical school in Ho Chi Minh City. It receives money from the government. This month the university said it is looking for a private investor³ to help it expand. The school wants to build a new training and health care center on its grounds. It said the idea is for the university to take responsibility for the center’s operations and the training, while a private company would handle the actual building project.

Private money may be needed

Doctor Ngo Minh Xuan is the Rector of the Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine. He said that “Ho Chi Minh City’s health care needs are critical due to rapid urbanization and a growing population.” But he noted⁴ that hospitals cannot meet those growing health care needs effectively by depending only on public money.

The efforts to partially⁵ privatize health services are part of a larger movement in the country of 100 million people. More and more international hospitals are opening up or expanding.

For example, the Hanh Phuc International Hospital, which opened in 2011 near Ho Chi Minh City, calls itself the “Singapore Standard Hospital” and treats women and children.

The Viet Duc University Hospital is also known as the Vietnam Germany Hospital. It has exchange and training programs with medical centers in France, Germany and Australia.

Vietnam’s government increasingly permits financing from private companies or groups, such as through a trade deal with the European Union that permits higher foreign investment.

Health care for all

Since the Vietnam War ended in 1975, the government has provided health care for every Vietnamese citizen. Most people have insurance policies that the government helps to pay for. But individuals use their own money to pay some of the costs.

Doctors treat their job as a public service. They often travel from their home base to hospitals in rural areas and other communities in need of medical services.

The government also works to improve health care in the countryside through community health centers. These local centers admit patients more easily than the big city hospitals.

Vietnam offers better health care services than neighboring countries as measured by international researchers. Between 2009 and 2018, the average life expectancy⁶ rate rose from 74.8 years to 75.9 years. The country’s measures of good health care services and supply of food also rose.

Weaknesses in the system

Still there are weaknesses in the health care system. Some people say these problems could be solved with more private investment. A sick person often has to pay a bribe⁷ to a doctor to request better care. Other patients have to share hospital beds or wait outside medical buildings.

The Vietnamese government has gotten close to its public debt ceiling of 65 percent of gross⁸ domestic⁹ product – that is, the total value of goods and services produced during a year.

There has been a drop in the rate of doctors per 1,000 people and in the relative number of hospital beds available over the past 10 years. That is especially hard for Ho Chi Minh City, the southern business center and home for 13 million people. The city’s population represents about one-fourth of Vietnam’s overall demand for health care. The Vietnam Chamber¹⁰ of Commerce and Industry reports that Ho Chi Minh City has more than 100 hospitals.

Another change coming to Vietnam is economic. The country is expected to move from a lower middle-income nation to an upper middle-income nation in the next 10 years.

Asia Pacific chief economist¹¹ Rajiv Biswas and economist Bernard Aw recently prepared a report for investment research firm IHS Markit. They found that the change “will make Vietnam a fast-growing market for a wide range of goods and services.”

Since health care will be counted as one of those services, it is likely that Vietnam’s debate about private funding of health care will continue.

I’m Jill Robbins.

Words in This Story

socialist – adj. describes a government which supports that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or controlled by the community as a whole

rector – n. a leader; someone who directs something, such as a religious group

urbanization – n. the process by which towns and cities are formed and become larger as more and more people begin living and working in central areas

privatize – v. to remove (something) from government control and place it in private control or ownership

insurance – n. a method of guaranteeing safety or protection

bribe – n. something valuable that is given in order to get someone to do something

income – n. earnings; monetary gain

1 financing   

n.筹措资金

参考例句：

• The main source of our outside financing is bank loan. 我们向外筹措资金的主要渠道是银行贷款。
• They live in a symbiosis with governments that they are financing. 他们与他们服务的政府互利共存。

2 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

3 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

4 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

5 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

6 expectancy   

n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额

参考例句：

• Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
• The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。

7 bribe   

n.贿赂；v.向…行贿，买通

参考例句：

• He tried to bribe the policeman not to arrest him.他企图贿赂警察不逮捕他。
• He resolutely refused their bribe.他坚决不接受他们的贿赂。

8 gross   

adj.全部的，粗俗的，肥胖的；vt.获得...总收入

参考例句：

• The gross weight of the box of chocolates is 500 grams.那盒巧克力的全部重量是500克。
• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。

9 domestic   

adj.家里的，国内的，本国的；n.家仆，佣人

参考例句：

• This is domestic news.这是国内新闻。
• She does the domestic affairs every day.她每天都忙家务。

10 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

11 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。