Regulations on information and data on prices are issued. Photo: T.D

Deputy Nam Dinh province proposed the Ministry of Finance in written on difficulties in price assessment due to lack of information of some uncommon items on the market. Some items are listed on the e-portals of ministries and agencies, but do not have completed specification, so the reference to determine the price of goods is not accurate.

To ensure efficiency in State valuation activities, the Deputy proposed the Ministry of Finance to allow information on state valuation activities to be shared among provinces and cities on the National Database on Prices; and advise the Government to direct ministries and agencies to strengthen price declaration activities for goods in accordance with the Law on Prices and specialized laws, especially for medical equipment and consumables.

Responding to the Deputy’s proposal, the Ministry of Finance said that there are regulations on sharing price data information, on state valuation activities. The responsibilities of line ministries and the People's Committees of provinces and centrally run cities are specified in Clause 1, Article 1 of Decree 149/2016/ND-CP dated 11/11/2016 of the Government on amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree 177/2013/ND-CP dated 14/11/2013 detailing and guiding the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Prices.

Line ministries are responsible for building and managing the price database in their respective sectors and fields; coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to connect, share and provide information on price database within their management scope into the national price database.

The Provincial People's Committee is responsible for directing the Department of Finance to assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with, relevant departments, agencies organizations and individuals to build and manage the local price database; work with the unit managing the National Price Database to connect and share information of the local price database with the National Price Database.

For the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Finance is accelerating the development of a national database of prices and has completed the project "Building a national price database phase I". It is currently working on the project for the phase II, and the Ministry is also developing a Regulation on the use and management of the system of the national database on prices.

According to the provisions of Clause 10, Article 1 of Decree 12/2021/ND-CP dated 24/2/2021 of the Government amending and supplementing a number of articles of Decree 89/2013/ND-CP dated 6/8 2013 of the Government detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Prices on price appraisal, the appraiser must send a copy of a report on price appraisal result or a conclusion of asset price appraisal via official dispatch, fax or electronic reporting system to the Ministry of Finance, to build a database to for information provision and state management of appraisal of assets on the list of state secret assets.

Regarding the management and use of the National Database on Prices, the Ministry of Finance said, Article 10 of Circular 142/2015/TT-BTC dated 4/9/2015 of the Ministry of Finance regulates the national database on prices, forms of management and use of the national database on prices, including: via the internet on prices; through the e-portals managed by the national price database management agency; via dedicated network; a written request or a contract between the management agency and the unit exploiting and using national price data in accordance with law.

The National Center for Price Data and Services (Price Management Department) is the focal point in charge of managing, exploiting and using information in the National Database on Prices to provide information on prices to serve the State management tasks and under the request of organizations and individuals as prescribed by law. Agencies that develop price databases and the National Database on Prices; organizations and individuals participating in the provision and updating of price information for the construction of the national database on prices are authorized to exploit and use price data under their management. The exploitation of price data outside the scope of management must be permitted by the state management agency on the National Database on Prices and must pay fee (If any).

In addition, the Ministry of Finance issued Circular 93/2021/TT-BTC dated November 1, 2021 on regulating the structure and format of data for connection and sharing of data with the National Database on Prices. In particular, regulations on the structure and format of data for connection, and the sharing of data, between the National Database on Prices and the price database systems of ministries, sectors, localities and other organizations and individuals.

Regarding recommendations related to price declaration, the Ministry of Finance said that, from the beginning of 2022, the Prime Minister's Steering Committee for Price Management has issued many guiding documents on strengthening the price management.

The ministries, agencies and localities have been requested for receiving and reviewing price declaration described by the Law on Prices and specialized laws.

As for medical equipment, according to the provisions of Decree 98/2021/ND-CP dated 8/11/2021 of the Government on the management of medical equipment, prices of medical equipment must be declared to the Ministry of Health. The Ministry of Health issued Circular 19/2021/TT-BYT dated 16/11/2021 stipulating the form of documents and reports of the Government on the implementation of Decree 98/2021/ND-CP dated 8/11/2021 of the Government on the management of medical equipment; which stipulates the list of prices of medical equipment; Updated table of medical equipment prices.

The Ministry of Health is drafting a circular detailing the implementation and measures to implement a number of articles of the Decree 98/2021/ND-CP dated 8/11/2021 on management of medical equipment, in which it is expected that there are detailed regulations on the implementation of price declaration in accordance with the goal of strengthening the activities of price declaration.