HCMC – The HCMC Department of Customs has urged the municipal government to ask the prime minister for his opinion on the import of secondhand ambulances to serve the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic in the city.
According to the department, secondhand ambulances are banned from being imported. Under the regulations on the management and use of aid from foreign organizations and individuals, the country must not receive products from the list of banned imports, the local media reported.
In addition, used medical equipment and ambulances can only be imported for research and training purposes, and cannot be used to transport or treat patients, according to the Ministry of Health. As a result, the city cannot import used ambulances.
Meanwhile, HCMC is in dire need of medical equipment and ambulances to transport and treat Covid-19 patients.
Therefore, the municipal Department of Customs suggested the municipal government propose the prime minister relax customs procedures for imports serving the fight against the pandemic.
Nguyen Huu Nghiep, deputy head of the HCMC Department of Customs, said the department had received a document of the municipal government on the import of 20-30 used ambulances from South Korea.
The International Fire Sprinkler Association had proposed providing the vehicles to Vietnam. However, the transport and repair costs for each ambulance amount to US$6,000.
