Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long speaks at the press conference (Source: VNA)

The Ministry of Health has ordered 22 central-level hospitals to prepare beds for treating nCoV patients. In a worst case scenario, the brand new 500-bed building at the Bach Mai hospital in Vietnam will be mobilized. Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long said: “We will not set up field hospitals but will mobilize available hospitals to receive patients. Khanh Hoa province, for example, has prepared the Lung Hospital and the Dermatology Hospital in case the Tropical Disease Hospital is overloaded. All localities have prepared response plans so the public should not panic.”

The Prime Minister has ordered strict isolation of arriving persons who have been to the 31 cities and provinces affected by NCoV in China during the last 14 days. Military units have asked their affiliate hospitals to prepare doctors, medical equipment, and isolation areas. The Ministry of Defense has worked closely with the Ministry of Health and other agencies to isolate Vietnamese citizens returning from China and provide them with any necessary treatment. Lieutenant General Nguyen Xuan Kien, Director of the Military Medicine Department of the Ministry of Defense, said: “We have reviewed medical equipment and prioritized on-the-spot forces. We are ready to deploy field hospitals if necessary. We have provided chemicals and necessary equipment to response teams and prepared face masks, thermometers, and personnel to cope with the epidemic.”

A team from the Ministry of Industry and Trade has worked with a number of companies to ensure there are sufficient supplies. Supermarkets like Vinmart, Big C, and Saigon Co.op in Hanoi are ready to meet a surge in demand for food.