Da Nang abandons Mr. Ba Thanh's free parking policy?

The policy of free parking at public hospitals proposed by the late Secretary of the City Party Committee Nguyen Ba Thanh is being reconsidered by the People's Council of Da Nang City.

During the discussion session on the afternoon of December 5, many delegates of the Da Nang People's Council proposed to continue the policy of free parking at public hospitals for people.

Previously, the People's Committee of Da Nang City submitted a document to the People's Council on regulations on policies to support parking fees at public medical facilities.

Accordingly, this policy was proposed by the Da Nang City Party Committee in 2011, and then approved by the People's Council. People who go to public hospitals and district and county health centers for medical examination and treatment will not have to pay parking fees.

Delegate Le Minh Trung proposed to continue the policy of free parking at public medical facilities.

Every year, Da Nang spends about 4.6 billion VND from the budget to support the cost of implementing this policy.

After the submission of the People's Committee of Da Nang City, many People's Council delegates spoke up to request continued implementation of the policy.

Delegate Le Minh Trung said that this is a humane policy, showing concern for the people. When people come to the hospital, they should not talk about who is rich or poor anymore. Support is also a way to bring good psychology to the patients.

According to Mr. Trung, the amount of more than 4 billion VND per year is not too large, the city can balance other revenue and expenditure sources to continue implementing this good policy.

Sharing the same view, Deputy Thich Thong Dao proposed to retain the above policy. He said that this is a humane policy, a beautiful trademark of Da Nang City.

“More than a week ago, Hai Phong City had a policy of exempting parking fees at a large public hospital. It was done very systematically, the parking attendants even bowed to the patients. I think the City should continue to maintain this policy,” said Mr. Dao.

Delegates attending the 6th session of the Da Nang People's Council

Should I give up?

Delegate Vo Van Thuong said that the City People's Council needs to decide on matters in accordance with the law. This policy is no longer in accordance with the Ordinance on Fees, Charges and the Law on Prices, so it should be abolished.

Meanwhile, Deputy To Van Hung acknowledged that if it is a policy, there must be a systematic report on the social impact of that policy. In order to have a basis for deciding whether to abandon it or not, he proposed assigning a committee of the City People's Council to conduct public consultation on this matter to have a basis for making a decision in the next session.

Vice Chairman of the Da Nang People's Council Nguyen Nho Trung stated that the policy of free parking at public hospitals is humane. However, the city needs to reconsider.

“When people are happy, we are happy, but we must avoid problems; not everyone who gives money is humane,” said Mr. Trung.

“Some people go to the hospital for treatment, others go to visit the sick, and then people take advantage of the parking lot to go to work. Not to mention the civil liability. If there is a fire or loss, who will be responsible? Where will the money come from to pay compensation?”, Mr. Trung raised the issue.

Director of Da Nang Department of Finance Nguyen Van Phung said that the Resolution on free parking must be removed to comply with the law.

Director of Da Nang Department of Finance Nguyen Van Phung said that the Decree on free parking at public hospitals must be abolished.

According to Mr. Phung, during the implementation period, many people took advantage of this policy. “From January 1, 2017, the Ordinance on the Law on Prices and Fees has been applied. We must abolish the resolution on free parking at public hospitals to comply with the Ordinance,” said Mr. Phung.

Mr. Phung also said that the City People's Committee has developed a project to support poor patients when they go to the hospital for medical examination and treatment. In addition, 23 public health facilities in the area have implemented Decree 16, moving towards financial autonomy. To generate revenue, the hospital has put parking lots for bidding.

Vice Chairman of Da Nang People's Council Nguyen Nho Trung.

The free parking policy at public health facilities in Da Nang was an initiative proposed by the late Secretary of the City Party Committee Nguyen Ba Thanh. This initiative was approved by the Da Nang City People's Council meeting in December 2010 and implemented by the Da Nang City People's Committee from January 1, 2011.

With 23 hospitals and medical facilities, in 6 years (2011-2017), the city spent more than 32.4 billion VND, with an average annual budget support of more than 4.6 billion VND/year.

According to Vietnamnet.vn