The recent enactment of the Law on Medical Diagnosis and Treatment and its implementing Decree No.96/2023/ND-CP for the first time establishes a legal framework for telemedicine.

Meanwhile, the lift of foreign ownership restrictions on online IT services under the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) fosters investment as well as merger and acquisition activity in the country’s burgeoning healthtech sectors.

Telemedicine in Vietnam began during the recent pandemic but lacked formal legal support. The enactment of the new law and decree, effective from January, established a legal framework for telemedicine. This legislation not only formalises telemedicine but also specifies the types of telemedicine eligible to be covered by state health insurance.

The new law defines “remote medical diagnosis or treatment” (referred to as telemedicine here) as a form of medical diagnosis or treatment where there is no direct contact between the healthcare professional and the patient and, instead, the diagnosis or treatment is conducted through IT devices.

Read the full text here: Legal reforms pave the way for healthtech advancements (vir.com.vn)