Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected people's health and lives. Nevertheless, the evidences on the impact of the epidemic on people's mental health are limited. Objectives: To describe the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on work, life and mental health among people in Cao Bang province in 2020. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 1913 people living in Cao Bang province who voluntarily answered the online questionnaires. The questionnaire was sent to commune health stations to share with village health workers and people in Cao Bang province. The DASS 21 questionnaire was used to assess mental health. Results: 53.6% of the participants were negatively affected by the COVID-19 epidemic (job loss, increased/decreased working hours); 47.4% participants were reduced daily spending or received support from others during the pandemic. The prevalence of people suffering anxiety was 11.5% while those reported having depression and stress accounted for 16.6% and 8.2%, respectively. The difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05) for the depression among people living in rural and urban areas; age group (40-49/ < 30) (OR=1.524); gender (female/male) (OR=1.348); decreased income (OR=1.568); going through  epidemic areas (OR=4.249); changed employment (OR=1.327). There was a difference in anxiety among people from different living areas (OR=1.546); household economy (poor, near-poor/normal) (OR=1.491). There was a difference in stress between different living areas (OR=1.771); gender (female/male) (OR=1.516); household economy (OR=2.098); fluctuated income (OR=1.679); going through epidemic areas (OR=4.373). Conclusions: The COVID-19 epidemic affected the mental health of people in Cao Bang province.