Ho Chi Minh City ramps up free health checks for 14 million residents

The drive is part of efforts to implement Resolution No. 72-NQ/TW, which seeks to shift Vietnam's healthcare system toward prevention, early disease detection, and continuous health management.

Check-ups are free to recipients, with costs covered through the state budget, employers, school health funding and, for eligible groups, the national health insurance fund. 

Examination results will be stored in electronic health records linked to the city's Digital Citizen app and Vietnam's VNeID platform.

The program began on May 25, but only slightly more than one million people had received check-ups as of July 15. 

With most of the city's population still to be reached, authorities have launched an intensive citywide push to accelerate the roll-out.

Citywide health check effort gathers pace

Ho Chi Minh City launched a 150-day intensive drive on July 16 to accelerate its 2026 citywide health check program, with early signs of progress already emerging.

At Cu Chi Regional General Hospital and the health stations in Ba Diem and Xuan Thoi Xuan Communes on the same day, large numbers of residents waited for their turn as medical staff worked quickly to conduct examinations.

Nguyen Thi Kim Dung, 50, from Tan An Hoi Commune, was among those receiving a health check at Cu Chi Regional General Hospital. 

She said she was highly satisfied with the way the examination was organized and with the medical staff's attitude and service.

"Receiving a free check-up and having the results stored in an electronic health record for long-term monitoring is very meaningful. The examination was comprehensive, and everyone was pleased with and supportive of the program," Dung said.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the cumulative number of people examined rose from more than 20,700 in the first week after the program began to nearly 49,000 by the fifth week and around 120,000 by the seventh. The figure surpassed 500,000 as of July 15.

When examinations organized since the beginning of the year for trade union members and workers are included, more than one million people citywide had received health checks.

The city is currently capable of examining more than 25,000 people a day, with its capacity expected to increase during the 150-day intensive campaign.

Time running short, prompting an all-out citywide effort

With just over four months remaining and around 13 million people still to be reached, the city faces immense pressure to meet its target, requiring a far broader and more intensive effort across the entire system.

Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Anh Dung, deputy director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, said that after more than 50 days of implementing the program, the clearest lesson was that broad appeals alone would not be enough.

"For the program to succeed, every task must have a specific, quantifiable target, a clearly defined target group, a responsible agency, a completion deadline, and measurable outcomes," he said.

With firm direction from city leaders, the engagement of the entire political system, and coordinated efforts by the health sector, government agencies, and local authorities, Ho Chi Minh City can meet the target on time, or even ahead of schedule.