Seeking care in Vietnam, you hold more rights than you think — and some duties few mention. The 2023 Law on Medical Examination and Treatment devotes a chapter to patients’ rights and duties; foreigners enjoy them like Vietnamese nationals, no nationality discrimination.
7 core patient rights (2023 Medical Law)
- 1. Information and explanation (Article 9): health status, examination/treatment methods and services, service prices; guidance on self-monitoring, care and complication prevention.
- 2. Safe, suitable care: methods appropriate to your illness, health status and the facility’s actual conditions.
- 3. Choose or refuse care: participate in the care process; choose or refuse treatment methods (except emergencies or dangerous infectious diseases per regulations); refuse research or clinical trials.
- 4. Health-information confidentiality: health status and medical records are confidential — disclosed to others only with your consent or legal permission.
- 5. Privacy and dignity: respectful, non-discriminatory treatment.
- 6. Complaints and disputes: the right to complaint resolution with facilities and practitioners (see EXP-0473).
- 7. Choose a representative: authorise relatives/representatives to exercise care rights when you cannot.
3 duties patients forget
- Disclose honestly your medical history and health status — hiding illness misleads diagnosis, at your cost.
- Follow treatment instructions and facility rules.
- Pay care costs per regulations (except exemptions or HI coverage).
Foreigners: 3 specific situations
- Language gaps in surgical consent: every consent must rest on information you fully understand — demand English explanations or an interpreter; never sign Vietnamese papers you don’t understand.
- Emergency: facilities may not refuse emergency patients — even without money, HI or Vietnamese nationality. Billing comes later.
- Transfer: you must be informed and consent before transfer to another facility (except emergencies).
FAQs
Doctor refusing me as a foreigner?
Unlawful — the 2023 Medical Law bans patient discrimination. Report to the Department of Health hotline or the facility.
Can I choose my doctor?
Within the facility’s capacity — public hospitals usually assign by department; private/international hospitals usually allow choice (possible choice-of-doctor fees).
Can my family access my health information?
Only with your consent — your health information is confidential. Hospitals inform relatives when you authorise it or lose decision-making capacity.
Contact us
FLAT Law Firm advises foreign nationals and their families on inheritance, wills, driving licences, health insurance and money transfers in Vietnam. Contact us for advice on your specific case.
