In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic still developing complicatedly in Vietnam, the Vietnamese social security sector has joined hands to prevent the pandemic; continued to work with central and local agencies to advise and propose policies and solutions to better support policyholders of social insurance and health insurance; assisted employers and employees affected by the COVID-19 pandemic; actively and drastically adopted many solutions to support and serve policyholders; and removed difficulties for employers and employees.

Actively, quickly carrying out support solutions

Adhering to directions of the Government and the Prime Minister, to urgently deliver Government support policies to employees and employers faced with difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, right after the Government issued Resolution 68/NQ-CP and the Prime Minister issued Decision 23/2021/QD-TTg, the Vietnam Social Security (VSS) mobilized all efforts to drastically implement support policies on social insurance and unemployment insurance by avoiding additional procedures and documents, handling all applications in time and making settlement for employees and employers in less than one working day.

As a result, just over a week after the Prime Minister issued Decision 23/2021/QD-TTg, on July 16, 2021, the VSS completed the reduction of payment to 0% to the occupational accident and occupational disease insurance fund. Specifically, social security agencies of provinces and cities completed procedures and sent notices to 375,335 employers, who hired 11,238,437 employees. The reduced value of the payment to the occupational accident and occupational disease insurance fund (from July 2021 to June 2022) was VND4,322 billion.

This reduction is both a practical solution that helps businesses overcome the current difficult period, and it ensures the settlement of employees' legitimate rights when they unfortunately suffer from an occupational accident and occupational disease, thus helping ensure their livelihoods and health, especially when they are struggling to live through the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition, the Vietnamese social security sector received and processed applications filed by 403 units in 44 provinces and cities with 68,568 employees temporarily suspending payment of VND473.3 billion to retirement and survivorship funds as of September 1, 2021. They verified the list of 651,429 employees hired by 26,595 employers in 61 provinces and cities to enjoy policy benefits.

Timely settlement of benefits for policyholders

In the past years, payment and settlement of social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance benefits for policyholders have always been properly, adequately and promptly implemented by the social security sector. Given the complicated development of the COVID-19 pandemic since 2020, this work has been actively facilitated to make timely payments and enable policyholders of social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance to enjoy benefits.

In 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic is developing more complicatedly. In the first eight months, the entire social security sector settled sick benefits for 4,739,050 people, maternity benefits for 1,202,594 people, and medical treatment benefits for 258,323 people. By the end of July 2021, over 84 million insured people received medical examination and treatment; more than 400,000 people received unemployment benefits; and more than 9,000 workers got vocational training support.

The COVID-19 pandemic is reportedly devastating the business operations of many enterprises whose workers lost their jobs. Support policies on social insurance and unemployment insurance according to Resolution 68/NQ-CP of the Government for employees and employers as well as the full and timely settlement of social insurance, unemployment insurance and health insurance by the social security sector for policyholders have worked effectively, helping people, employees and businesses to overcome difficulties. The social security sector has affirmed its pivotal role in the social security system.

Speeding up IT application, flexible support methods

During the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, many localities have to adopt social distancing. To provide benefits of social insurance, health insurance, unemployment insurance and other support policies to beneficiary people, employees and businesses in a timely manner, the VSS has applied flexible and creative payment and support methods to provide the greatest convenience for policyholders.

The VSS provided 100% of Level 4 public services online (documents are sent, delivered and returned online) on the National Public Service Portal; promoted payment of pensions and social insurance benefits through ATM accounts and the banking system, paid at residence addresses of beneficiaries; encouraged policyholders to use the VssID application on smartphones for use in medically insured medical examination and treatment, for use in work with social security agencies and for use in a search for other insurance information. This will help people reduce mobility and contact, thus helping reduce the risk of COVID-19 infections in the community.

In addition, VSS has coordinated with the Government Office and related agencies, connected and integrated to provide five out of seven online services to support employees and employers faced with difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on the National Public Service Portal (https://www.dichvucong.gov.vn), including supporting laid-off and unpaid leave employees; supporting employers to borrow money for salary payment; supporting laid-off employees; supporting employees who terminate employment contracts but are not eligible for unemployment benefits; and halting payment to the pension and death fund.

Before the complicated development of the COVID-19 pandemic, when many provinces and cities needed to use data and authentication information about policyholders and beneficiaries of social insurance, health insurance and unemployment insurance, VSS has actively shared data in the national insurance database, enabling localities to use for making test lists, vaccination lists, check medical records, quickly monitor and trace infections, and zone and eradicate infections in industrial parks, export processing zones and factories.

It can be seen that a series of active and drastic solutions of the social security sector have helped improve service quality for policyholders of social insurance and health insurance; promptly supported employees and employers faced with difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially reducing mobility to and physical contact with social security officers in dealing with insurance policies, thus a good way to restrict COVID-19 contagion in the community.