The rapid succession of developments in the major corruption case at the Ministry of Health involving Viet My Investment Joint Stock Company and other entities within its ecosystem is causing a stir among the public and political observers.
Following the Viet A test kit scandal, former Minister Nguyen Thanh Long—who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence—led to a series of high-ranking officials, from the central government to local levels, being indicted or forced to retire.
To date, the Vietnam-America scandal under Minister Dao Hong Lan continues to deal devastating blows to public trust regarding the healthcare sector’s systemic and organized corruption scandals.
This is evident in the Investigative Agency’s decision to indict and detain Deputy Minister Trần Văn Thuấn, along with a number of key leaders at local levels and frontline hospitals.
According to experts, the dangerous difference and scale of destruction in the Việt Mỹ case compared to previous healthcare scandals lie in the far more sophisticated and professional methods of profiteering.
The Viet My business ecosystem, led by former Chairman Bui Chan Phuong, chose to focus on trading and manipulating high-end, specialized, and expensive medical equipment. Their targets were medical machines worth hundreds of billions of dong.
According to the Ministry of Public Security, from August 2007 to the present, this company’s business network has won 246 out of 276 bids, achieving a near-overwhelming win rate with a total value of approximately 6,000 tỷ đồng.
Under Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien, the company began to penetrate the market more deeply, winning a series of large-scale bids in Central Vietnam and at several central hospitals.
A “boom” turning point occurred during the 2020–2022 period under Minister Nguyen Thanh Long, when Viet My suddenly increased its charter capital to 350 billion VND and secured numerous large-scale radiotherapy accelerator contracts in Khanh Hoa and Lam Dong.
However, the peak of this boom occurred from 2022 to mid-2026 under Minister Dao Hong Lan, when Viet My’s contract win rate reached its “peak” before the company was dismantled.
In 2024 and 2025 alone, the company virtually monopolized “mega-contracts” ranging from 100 to nearly 300 billion VND each at major hospitals such as K Hospital, Cho Ray Hospital, Phu Tho, and Dak Lak.
Notably, some argue that Minister Đào Hồng Lan is not at fault because she was “completely unaware” of the manipulative activities carried out by the Việt-Mỹ company and its ecosystem. The reasoning is as follows:
First, Việt Mỹ’s schemes had gone beyond the Ministry’s control, as the company had established a chain of eight shell companies in Singapore and Hong Kong to buy and resell equipment, artificially inflating prices at the source before completing import procedures back into the country with all valid seals and stamps.
Therefore, responsibility for this transnational mafia network falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Public Security, not within the Ministry of Health’s inspection authority.
Second, and more seriously, the flow of fraudulent funds has infiltrated and neutralized the Ministry of Health’s leadership from within. The arrest of Deputy Minister Trần Văn Thuấn on charges of accepting bribes demonstrates that the evaluation and advisory mechanisms have been completely “silenced” by this flow of dirty money.
In addition to the main entity, Viet My, suspect Bui Chan Phuong also operated two extremely important subsidiaries: Sao Kim Medical Company and Hoang Mai Pharmaceutical Company.
These two entities played a role in dividing the front lines of manipulation, while simultaneously staging a “red vs. blue” charade to manipulate the bidding process and completely eliminate genuine competitors. Furthermore, they generated massive funds to bribe officials in order to cover their tracks.
However, public opinion holds that Minister Dao Hong Lan’s attempts to deflect responsibility, as described above, remain unconvincing. At the same time, the public is demanding that the Ministry of Public Security provide a satisfactory response as soon as possible.
Tra My – Thoibao.de
