Vietnam is currently transitioning more than 100,000 antiretroviral therapy (ART) patients from externally-funded to locally-financed treatment services under social health insurance (SHI). Signing up for insurance requires patients to complete multiple and often challenging administrative procedures. To help navigate this complicated process, the USAID Sustainable HIV Response from Technical Assistance (SHIFT) activity has developed and helped to roll out a series of Individual Treatment Continuation Plan (ITCP) tools, including an online data entry and reporting system. These tools were used in three provinces - Ho Chi Minh City, Nghe An and Dien Bien - to successfully transition more than 30,000 patients to SHI. On achieving this success, Vietnam health authorities have endorsed the ITCP approach and expanded its use to additional provinces. So what? Vietnam’s health insurance program is a key way in which HIV/AIDS treatment is sustainable. As USAID works to strengthen Vietnam’s ownership of a sustainable HIV/AIDS response and transition HIV/AIDS treatment to SHI, the ITCP tools make the process more efficient and reduce the risk of patient drop-out.
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