HCMC – Women who give birth to two children before the age of 35 will receive a minimum reward of VND2 million from January 1, 2027, under a new government policy aimed at encouraging childbirth in areas with low fertility rates.
The policy is clarified in Government Decree No. 168/2026 guiding the implementation of the Population Law.
The support applies to women living in provinces and cities with fertility rates below the replacement level, women from very small ethnic minority groups, and women who have two children before turning 35. Funding will come from local government budgets.
The decree also introduces state support for prenatal and newborn screening services.
Pregnant women will be eligible for screening for four congenital conditions: Down syndrome, Edwards syndrome, Patau syndrome, and thalassemia.
Newborns will be screened for five conditions, including congenital hypothyroidism, G6PD deficiency, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, congenital hearing loss, and severe congenital heart defects.
Prenatal screening support will cover actual costs of up to VND900,000 per case, while newborn screening support will be capped at VND600,000 per case. The payments will be made directly to healthcare facilities conducting the screening tests.
From July 1 to December 31, 2026, free screening services and state-funded support will be available to pregnant women and newborns from poor and near-poor households, social welfare beneficiaries, and residents in disadvantaged, mountainous, border, island, and ethnic minority areas.
From January 1, 2027, all pregnant women and newborns nationwide will be eligible for screening support under the National Target Program on Healthcare, Population and Development for 2026-2035 until the services are covered by national health insurance.
