National Assembly Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn presents gifts to war invalids and sick soldiers at the Long Đất Nursing Centre. — VNA/VNS Photos

HCM CITY — National Assembly (NA) Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn on Sunday urged HCM City authorities to provide medical check-ups for people who rendered meritorious services to the nation, war invalids, sick veterans and families of fallen soldiers, along with the free distribution of medicines.

He was speaking during a visit to present gifts to war invalids and sick soldiers at the Long Đất Nursing Centre for War Invalids and Meritorious People in Long Hải Commune, ahead of the 79th anniversary of War Invalids and Martyrs' Day on July 27.

He also ordered relevant authorities to provide support in treatment costs and the provision of medical equipment like wheelchairs and hearing aids for beneficiaries.

Authorities have been told to provide free health insurance coverage for people with meritorious services, war invalids and relatives of fallen soldiers in accordance with regulations.

Meeting with severely wounded war invalids from 15 provinces and cities receiving care at the centre, Mẫn briefed the veterans on the country's positive socio-economic performance, such as its GDP growth of 8.18 percent in the first six months of 2026.

Mẫn said Việt Nam has more than 9.2 million people with meritorious service to the revolution, including over 1.2 million martyrs, nearly 140,000 Vietnamese heroic mothers and more than 600,000 war invalids and sick soldiers, in addition to millions of martyrs' relatives and resistance veterans.

He stressed that caring for people with meritorious service, war invalids and martyrs' families has long been a key political task of the Party and State, reflecting the nation's enduring tradition of 'remembering the source while drinking water' and carrying profound material and spiritual significance.

The NA chairman said the Ordinance on Preferential Treatment for People with Meritorious Service to the Revolution has been revised to expand the number of beneficiaries and increase allowances for war invalids, sick soldiers and martyrs' relatives, ensuring that people with meritorious service enjoy living standards equal to or higher than average in their local communities.

He noted that the Ministry of Home Affairs, along with other ministries, sectors and localities, has stepped up efforts to resolve longstanding policy issues concerning people with meritorious service. In particular, the nationwide 500-day campaign to search for, recover and identify the remains of fallen soldiers is being carried out vigorously to fulfil the long-held wishes of martyrs' families.

During the first half of the year, authorities recovered the remains of 1,255 martyrs and collected unidentified DNA samples from 12,127 martyrs' graves.

In HCM City, initial progress has also been made in the search for and identification of martyrs' remains at Lê Thị Riêng Park, where the remains of numerous soldiers missing for more than 60 years have been discovered and are undergoing identification.

Urging the continued promotion of the nation's tradition of gratitude, the NA leader called for more houses to be built and repaired, savings books to be presented and employment opportunities created to help policy beneficiary families improve their living standards.

He also requested stronger efforts to search for, recover and identify martyrs' remains and to renovate martyrs' cemeteries so that they become sites for educating younger generations about the country's revolutionary tradition.

Earlier the same morning, Mẫn visited and presented gifts to Vietnamese heroic mother Trần Thị Lưỡng, 93, whose husband and son were both martyrs, and 98-year-old Vietnamese heroic mother Trần Thị Trinh, whose only son died for the nation, at their homes in Tam Long Ward, HCM City.

NA Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn offers incense at Long Điền Đất Đỏ Martyrs' Cemetery.

He also offered incense at Long Điền Đất Đỏ Martyrs' Cemetery and paid tribute to national heroine Võ Thị Sáu at her monument and memorial house. — VNS