According to Article 12 of Decree 188/2025/NĐ-CP, cases of health insurance card suspension, temporary lock, or value revocation from August 15, 2025, are as follows:
Cases of Health Insurance Card Revocation
Based on Clause 1, Article 12 of Decree 188/2025/NĐ-CP, health insurance cards are revoked in cases specified in Clause 1, Article 20 of the Law on Health Insurance.
According to Clause 1, Article 20 of the 2008 Law on Health Insurance, health insurance cards are revoked in the following case:
Case 1: Fraud in the issuance of health insurance cards;
Specifically, Decree 188/2025/NĐ-CP defines fraud in the issuance of health insurance cards as including:
– Fraudulent information about the beneficiary or benefit level in the issuance of health insurance cards;
Other fraudulent acts.
Case 2: The individual named on the health insurance card no longer participates in health insurance.
Using someone else’s health insurance card for medical treatment will result in card suspension.
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Cases of Health Insurance Card Suspension or Temporary Lock
According to Clause 3, Decree 188/2025/NĐ-CP, health insurance cards are temporarily locked or suspended in cases specified in Clause 2, Article 20 of the Law on Health Insurance when an individual uses someone else’s health insurance card for medical treatment.
In such cases, the cardholder must reclaim the card and pay the penalties as prescribed by law.
Temporary locking is a system-based action, where the electronic health record and health insurance card data are synchronized with the individual’s citizen identification number. Temporary card suspension applies to physical cards. Individuals whose cards are suspended or temporarily locked cannot use their health insurance until they pay the fine and reclaim the card.
When are Suspended/Locked Health Insurance Cards Reinstated/Unlocked?
Suspended or locked health insurance cards are reinstated or unlocked when: The card lender and the borrower have fulfilled their penalty obligations and taken remedial actions (if any) as per the administrative penalty decision.
Specifically, Article 84 of Decree 117/2020/NĐ-CP details penalties for using health insurance cards in medical treatment as follows:
– Lending or borrowing health insurance cards for medical treatment is penalized in two levels:
+ Violations without damage to the health insurance fund: Fines range from 1 to 2 million VND.
+ Violations causing damage to the health insurance fund: Fines range from 3 to 5 million VND.
– Remedial measures include reimbursing the violated amount into the health insurance fund’s revenue account for acts damaging the fund.
Principles for Revoking, Suspending, or Temporarily Locking Health Insurance Cards
According to Clauses 4 and 5 of Decree 188/2025/NĐ-CP, the revocation, suspension, or temporary locking of health insurance cards follows these principles:
– Upon detecting violations leading to card revocation/suspension/locking, healthcare facilities notify the social insurance agency.
– The social insurance agency revokes, suspends, or temporarily locks health insurance cards upon detection or notification from healthcare facilities of violations.
The above legal basis and specific scenarios for revoking, suspending, or temporarily locking health insurance cards are outlined in Decree 188/2025/NĐ-CP, effective from August 15, 2025. Participants should understand the handling principles, penalties, and card reinstatement procedures.
Penalties for Lending Health Insurance Cards
Decree 117/2020/NĐ-CP clearly outlines penalties for lending or borrowing health insurance cards.
Under Article 30 of this Decree, penalties for lending or borrowing health insurance cards are as follows:
– Violations without damage to the health insurance fund incur fines of 1-2 million VND.
– Violations causing damage to the health insurance fund incur fines of 3-5 million VND, with mandatory reimbursement of the violated amount into the health insurance fund’s revenue account.
From 2025, Paper Health Insurance Cards Issued Only in 3 Cases
From June 1, 2025, for requests to reissue or replace health insurance cards, social insurance officers will guide participants to install the VssID and VneID apps and use digital health insurance card images on these apps or chip-embedded citizen ID cards for medical treatment instead of paper cards.
New paper health insurance cards will only be issued in 3 cases:
(1) Inability to install VssID;
(2) Inability to install VneID;
(3) Lack of chip-embedded citizen ID card.
This regulation is part of Vietnam Social Insurance’s digital transformation program, implementing government directives to reduce administrative procedures and modernize processes, benefiting health insurance participants. The use of citizen ID cards, VneID, and VssID for medical treatment instead of paper health insurance cards has been effectively implemented by Vietnam Social Insurance in collaboration with relevant ministries and sectors.
For VssID, most accounts are now verified with population data and updated with citizen ID numbers. For unverified accounts, users can update their citizen ID or personal identification numbers in the VssID app. Updating citizen ID numbers in VssID not only synchronizes information but also facilitates insurance benefit inquiries and claims.
