ANNOUNCEMENT

ON THE CONCLUSION OF THE PRIME MINISTER NGUYEN XUAN PHUC AT THE STANDING GOVERNMENT MEETING ABOUT COVID-19 PREVENTION AND CONTROL

In the morning of September 11, 2020, the Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc chaired a Standing Government meeting about COVID-19 prevention and control. The meeting were attended by Deputy Prime Ministers: Truong Hoa Binh, Vu Duc Dam; Minister, Chairperson of the Government Office Mai Tien Dung, Acting Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long, members of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 prevention and control; representatives of the People's Committees of provinces and cities including Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Dak Lak, Quang Tri, Khanh Hoa, Dong Nai, Thanh Hoa, Ha Nam, Thai Binh, Hai Duong, Bac Giang, Lang Son (online meeting from their provinces and cities). After hearing the report of the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 prevention and control, the report of the Government Office and the opinions of the Prime Ministers and attendees, the Prime Minister expressed the following opinions:

1. The Prime Minister highly appreciated ministries, central authorities, the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 prevention and control and local authorities, especially Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Hai Duong and other provinces/cities where anti-covid measures are implemented promptly, uniformly and effectively. By and large, Covid-19 has been controlled nationwide. No new Covid-19 cases are recorded in the community for 10 consecutive days; affected provinces/cities have basically returned to normal. Ministries, central and local authorities have implemented the dual goal with positive initial results.

However, the risk of epidemic still exists and new cases may be detected in the community, especially when Vietnam reopens in the near future.  The Prime Minister requests ministries, ministerial agencies, Governmental agencies, the People’s Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities to continue to strictly pursue the dual goal: fighting the pandemic and reviving socio-economic development.

2. The People’s Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities shall preside over the following tasks:

a) Fully implement anti-covid measures according to the guidance of the Ministry of Health: wear face masks when going out, staying at public places and on public transport; regularly wash hands with soaps or antiseptic solution; limit large gathering in public places; keep a safe distance with other people, gradually form habits and lifestyles that are safe and suitable for the new situation. Each unit, enterprise, collective and individual has actively established the new normal, both promotion of socio-economic development and Covid-19 prevention and control.

b) Increase inspection and ensure the implementation of anti-covid measures in the new situation; impose sanctions for violations against regulations on Covid-19 prevention and control.

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d) Party committees and local authorities shall focus on well preparing measures to prevent the spread of disease, ensure the safety of socio-economic political events, foreign affairs and promote international trade in the new normal; ready all requirements to promote and attract investment, especially from major partners.

The anti-covid measures must facilitate production, business and the people’s lives. Strictly forbid the implementation of blockade-like measures, restrict travel and restrict trade. Do not require testing for SAR-CoV2 for people coming from provinces/cities without community cases; only require testing for people who have cough or fever. The People’s Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities shall review and immediately annul inappropriate regulations.

3. The Ministry of Health shall preside over the following tasks:

a) Cooperate with Ministries, central and local authorities in disseminating and guiding the implementation of anti-covid measures in the new situation. Research and guide the medical inspection and monitoring and sampling in cases of entrants into Vietnam when reopening international commercial flights. For foreign passengers entering Vietnam, specific regulations on epidemic prevention and control during the entry, travel and working in Vietnam must be promulgated. When detecting new Covid-19 cases, suspected cases must be traced, located and quarantined quickly and thoroughly.

b) Review and update scenarios and plans to respond to Covid-19 when it returns, organize training, drills and ready facilities and human resources for epidemic situations.

c) Continue to strictly implement anti-covid measures in healthcare facilities to prevent the epidemic from spreading in these healthcare facilities. Strengthen and expand the implementation of telemedicine, application of information technology to regularly support and guide provinces/cities to improve the capacity of health workers at all levels.

d) Accelerate researches on development of vaccines, increase international cooperation with countries with available clinical trial results of COVID-19 vaccines.

e) Regularly organize inspection of the implementation of anti-covid measures and the preparation for epidemic prevention and control in provinces/cities to ensure that they are always ready and prepared for responding to epidemic situations.

The Minister of Health, Chairpersons of the People’s Committees of provinces/cities shall direct the Directors of the Departments of Health of these provinces/cities to uphold their responsibilities in organizing the implementation of epidemic prevention and control in their provinces/cities, promptly detecting, reporting to the Communist Party Committees and authorities to resolve difficulties, take correctional actions and strictly handle violations.

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a) Strictly cooperate with the Ministry of Health in well controlling the Covid-19 epidemic in flights according to the schedules and avoiding negligence. Specific flight time shall be considered and decided by the Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh and the Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam.

- All entrants shall pay their quarantine and testing costs themselves; and they must install NCOVI application.

- Foreigners entering Vietnam to work for a short time (under 14 days) shall comply with regulations of the Ministry of Health.

b) Cooperate with the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Health in considering and solving problems occurring when reopening international commercial flights, including the selection of priority groups for entry, selection of airports to receive international commercial flights, plans for reducing congestion at airports, plans for management of entrants, organization of sampling for testing, appropriate medical quarantine and other instructions meeting the requirements of epidemic prevention and control. Each flight must have a specific and tight plan, ensuring the safety of the flight.

c) Cooperate with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in gradually and cautiously increasing the frequency of flights from countries with low risk of infection to bring in experts, investors and skilled workers entering Vietnam and repatriate Vietnamese citizens.

5. Regarding quarantine of entrants at pay-to-stay accommodation establishments:

a) The People's Committees of provinces and central-affiliated cities shall organize the quarantine of entrants at pay-to-stay accommodation establishments.

b) Provinces/cities, especially Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho and neighboring provinces of the 3 provinces above, shall urgently direct the selection of pay-to-stay accommodation establishments as places to quarantine entrants with a total capacity of at least 10.000 people which may increase gradually in the coming time.

c) The Ministry of Public Security and local authorities, especially health authorities, shall continue to strictly supervise the quarantine at accommodation establishments, ensuring the requirements for epidemic prevention and control, avoidance of cross infection and infection in the community.

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7. Ministry of Information and Communications, Ministry of Health, Vietnam Television of Vietnam, Voice of Vietnam, Vietnam News Agency, and press agencies shall continue to communicate about epidemic prevention and control in the new situation and well implement the recommendations of the authorities, especially for the elderly with underlying medical conditions; encourage voluntary health declaration, installation and use of the Bluezone application.

Ministry of Information and Communications shall research the integration of applications serving the epidemic prevention and control, ensuring the safety of personal information.

8. Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of National Defense and the People’s Committees of provinces shall continue to strictly control, promptly prevent and strictly handle illegal entrants, cases of organizing illegal entry, accommodation establishments, hotels receiving illegal entrants, enterprises receiving workers who are illegal entrants.

9. Ministries and central authorities, especially the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defense and local authorities shall continue to create the most favorable conditions with simple and clear procedures with specific time limits for the entry of foreign experts, managers of enterprises and skilled workers into Vietnam for working, and assume primary responsibility for this.

10. Ministries, central and local authorities shall continue to work online via the network environment; strengthen dissemination and guidance on implementation of epidemic prevention and control in the new situation, raise vigilance, regularly review and inspect the implementation of anti-covid measures and assurance of the safety at establishments and activities within their jurisdiction in order to promote socio-economic development, realize the dual goal, prevent stagnation and disruption of economic activities.

Ministries, central and local authorities shall, under their assigned responsibilities and competences, actively and effectively implement directions of the Prime Minister and avoid repeat thereto.

11. Ministry of Planning and Investment shall take charge and cooperate with the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Finance in proposing to the Government phase-2 disbursement of the social security package, especially for workers losing their jobs and their income.

For your knowledge and compliance./.

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MINISTER, CHAIRPERSON




Mai Tien Dung

Thông báo 326/TB-VPCP năm 2020 về kết luận của Thủ tướng Chính phủ Nguyễn Xuân Phúc tại cuộc họp Thường trực Chính phủ về phòng, chống dịch COVID-19 do Văn phòng Chính phủ ban hành